Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that total merchandise export for October 2017 amounted to MOP806 million, up by 6.1% year-on-year; value of re-exports (MOP686 million) increased by 11.0%, with that of Optical instruments surging by 618.1%; meanwhile, value of domestic exports (MOP120 million) slid by 15.1%, with that of Glass & glassware falling by 88.4%. Total merchandise import rose by 3.6% year-on-year to MOP6.25 billion, of which imports of Motor cars & motorcycles and Handbags & wallets expanded by 56.1% and 48.8% respectively. Merchandise trade deficit in October amounted to MOP5.44 billion.
From January to October 2017, total value of merchandise export increased by 10.3% year-on-year to MOP9.37 billion, of which value of re-exports (MOP7.90 billion) grew by 15.1%, but that of domestic exports (MOP1.46 billion) declined by 10.0%. Total value of merchandise import went up by 4.7% year-on-year to MOP60.50 billion. Merchandise trade deficit widened to MOP51.13 billion for the first ten months of 2017.
Analysed by destination, merchandise export to Mainland China increased by 21.1% year-on-year to MOP1.78 billion in the first ten months of 2017, of which exports to the nine provinces of the Pan Pearl River Delta (MOP1.58 billion) grew by 14.1%. Furthermore, exports to Hong Kong (MOP5.46 billion), the EU (MOP160 million) and the USA (MOP152 million) rose by 15.5%, 7.8% and 20.8% respectively. Meanwhile, exports to the Portuguese-speaking Countries (MOP0.7 million) dropped by 88.2% year-on-year. Exports of Non-textiles went up by 8.8% year-on-year to MOP8.59 billion, of which value of Machines, apparatus & parts (MOP1.06 billion) expanded by 51.2%, but that of Electronic components (MOP635 million) declined by 35.8%. Exports of Textiles & garments totalled MOP779 million, up by 29.9%.
By place of origin, merchandise import from Mainland China (MOP19.94 billion) and the Portuguese-speaking Countries (MOP521 million) decreased by 5.7% and 3.9% respectively year-on-year in the first ten months of 2017, whereas imports from the EU (MOP15.54 billion) increased by 12.4%. Analysed by place of consignment, merchandise import from Mainland China shrank by 2.1% to MOP9.74 billion, of which imports from the nine provinces of the Pan Pearl River Delta (MOP9.27 billion) fell by 1.2%. Imports of Consumer goods went up by 11.0% to MOP39.97 billion, with imports of Handbags & wallets (MOP2.79 billion) and Motor cars & motorcycles (MOP1.33 billion) rising by 34.8% and 29.9% respectively. However, value of imports of Mobile phones (MOP3.14 billion) and Construction materials (MOP1.46 billion) declined by 14.7% and 13.1% respectively.
External merchandise trade totalled MOP69.87 billion in the first ten months of 2017, up by 5.4% compared with MOP66.27 billion a year earlier.