The consumer price index (CPI) rose by 0.13 percentage points in October compared to September, marking the highest level since August 2024 (0.74%), according to official data.
The Statistics and Census Service reported that the inflation acceleration was mainly driven by food products and non-alcoholic beverages, which increased by 0.7%. Prices for dining out rose by 1.54%.
Expenditures on apartment rents and mortgages increased by 0.83% and 0.58%, respectively. On October 30, the Macau Monetary Authority approved the second interest rate cut within two months.
In April 2024, the Legislative Assembly of the territory passed the abolition of several housing acquisition taxes to “increase liquidity” in the real estate market, as argued by the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Lei Wai Nong.
With the recovery in visitor numbers, the Chinese semi-autonomous region recorded a 29.8% rise in the prices of jewelry, goldsmithing, and watches, popular products among tourists from mainland China.
The costs of tours and hotels for overseas trips by Macau residents rose by 5.87%, while expenditures on education and vehicle fuels increased by 1.67% and 3.18%, respectively.
Inflation in Macau accelerated in October, a period when the CPI began to rise again in mainland China after four months of decline.
In mainland China, by far Macau’s largest trading partner, the CPI recorded a year-on-year increase of 0.2%. China experienced deflation in six out of ten months of this year.
The deflation reflects weakness in domestic consumption and investment and is particularly severe, as a fall in asset prices, often contracted using credit, creates an imbalance between the value of loans and bank guarantees.
The value recorded in September surprised analysts, who had predicted that the indicator would remain unchanged (0%) compared to October 2024.
The world’s second-largest economy has been facing deflationary pressures for over two years, with weak domestic demand and excess industrial capacity pushing down prices, while uncertainty in international trade complicates the product flow for suppliers.
The producer price index, measuring factory-gate prices, continued the negative trend of the past two years, but recorded the smallest drop since August 2024, falling by 2.1%.
In the neighboring region of Hong Kong, inflation reached 1.2% in October, 0.1 percentage points higher than in September.
