Merchandise exports for February 2016 amounted to MOP710 million (US$88.89 million), up 3 per cent year-on-year, according to data released by the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) yesterday.
Total merchandise imports amounted to MOP4.93 billion, down 24. 6 per cent year-on-year and the lowest single-month figure since June 2011, with imports of mobile phones and watches down 54.2 per cent 40.8 per cent, respectively. The deficit in merchandise trade amounted to MOP4.22 billion.
The value of re-exports amounted to MOP617 million, 10.2 per cent up year-on-year, while domestic exports dropped by28.3 per cent, amounting to MOP93 million, including non-knitted or non-crocheted garments at MOP0.88 million and falling 82.4 per cent.
The external merchandise trade reached MOP13.55 billion in the first two months of 2016, down 18.9 per cent compared to MOP16.71 billion in the corresponding period of last year.
Exports to long-haul market drop
Merchandise exports mainly to Hong Kong (MOP1.04 billion) and Mainland China (MOP234 million) increased by 1 per cent and 2 per cent year-on-year in the first two months, with the EU (MOP29 million) and the USA (MOP20 million) dropping 27.7 per cent and 40.6 per cent, respectively.
Non-textiles exports increased 1.8 per cent (MOP1.55 billion) year-on-year, in which electronic components (MOP152 million) increased 112.8 per cent, including machines, apparatus & parts (MOP145 million) falling 33.9 per cent. Textiles & garments exported for MOP134 million, up 6.3 per cent.
Also in the first two months of this year, merchandise imports from Mainland China totalled MOP4.31 billion, decreasing 25.5 per cent year-on-year; merchandise imports from the EU totalled MOP2.9 billion, dropping 19.1 per cent compared to the same period of last year.
Imported consumer goods were down 13.7 per cent (MOP7.64 billion), including watches (MOP758 million) and motor vehicles (MOP225 million) which were down by 36.4 per cent and 38.4 per cent, respectively. In addition, mobile phones (MOP1.01 billion), fuels and lubricants (MOP848 million), and construction materials (MOP336 million) dropped 50.2 per cent, 27.5 per cent and 37 per cent, respectively.
