Total trade value between Macau and Mainland China plunged by 21.3 per cent year-on-year to US$1.68 billion (MOP 13.4 billion) for the first half of the year, due to both of the country’s exports and imports to and from the city notably decreasing. The latest official data, released by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, shows that the Mainland’s exports to the Special Administrative Region dropped by 21.3 per cent year-on-year to US$1.6 billion during the first half, while its imports from the city were down 22 per cent year-on-year to some US$80 million. For June alone, trade value between the two parties posted a year-on-year decrease of 20.8 per cent to US$310 million. The amount also represents a decline of 6.2 per cent month-on-month. Of the total, China’s exports to Macau accounted for US$300 million in the month, which plunged by 20.1 per cent year-on-year, or 6.1 per cent month-on-month. In addition, the country’s imports from Macau plummeted 25 per cent year-on-year, or 6.8 per cent month-on-month, amounting to some US$10 million. In the first six months of 2016 Mainland authorities greenlighted 169 investment projects of local firms in the nation – a fall of 20.3 per cent year-on-year. Nevertheless, total actual capital employed for these projects rose by 5.4 per cent year-on-year to US$540 million. As at the end of June, the country accumulatively approved 14,567 projects with investment by Macau companies, attracting total capital of US$13.3 billion or 0.8 per cent of the country’s total foreign investment. Meanwhile, Mainland Chinese companies invested US$380 million in the city’s non-financial businesses during the first six months of the year, the Ministry said. For the same period seven local projects were contracted by Mainland companies, worth a total of US$450 million. Accomplished sales of these projects totalled US$830 million. A total of 118,772 Mainland Chinese labourers were registered as working in the Special Administrative Region as at the end of June. K.L.
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