2024 Edition Primary

Background

Portuguese ships began arriving in 1513. In the 1550s, Portuguese paying tribute to China settled in Macau, which became the official entrepôt for all international trade with China and Japan and the first European settlement in the Far East.  The first governor was appointed in the 17th century, but the Portuguese remained largely under the control of the Chinese. In the 1930s and ’40s Macau was declared a neutral territory during the Sino-Japanese War and World War II and became a refuge for both Chinese and Europeans. Portugal officially made Macau an overseas province in 1951.  In April 1987, Portugal and China reached an agreement to return Macau to Chinese rule in 1999, using the Hong Kong Joint Declaration between China and the UK as a model. In this agreement, China promised that, under its "one country, two systems" formula, China's political and economic system would not be imposed on Macau, and that Macau would enjoy a "high degree of autonomy" in all matters except foreign affairs and defense for the next 50 years. However, after China's multi-year crackdown against the pro-democracy movement in nearby Hong Kong, the governments of China and the Macau Special Administrative Region worked to limit Macau's political autonomy by suppressing opposition activity in the 2021 legislative elections.

Area

land

28.2 sq km

total

28 sq km

water

0 sq km

Area - comparative

less than one-sixth the size of Washington, DC

Climate

subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers

Coastline

41 km

Elevation

highest point

Alto Coloane 172 m

lowest point

South China Sea 0 m

Geographic coordinates

22 10 N, 113 33 E

Geography - note

essentially urban; an area of land reclaimed from the sea measuring 5.2 sq km and known as Cotai now connects the islands of Coloane and Taipa; the island area is connected to the mainland peninsula by three bridges

Irrigated land

0 sq km (2012)

Land boundaries

regional borders

China 3 km

total

3 km

Land use

agricultural land

0% (2018 est.)

other

100% (2018 est.)

Location

Eastern Asia, bordering the South China Sea and China

Map references

Southeast Asia

Maritime claims

not specified

Natural hazards

typhoons

Natural resources

NEGL

Population distribution

population fairly equally distributed

Terrain

generally flat

Age structure

0-14 years

14.4% (male 47,346/female 45,216)

15-64 years

69.9% (male 210,059/female 240,577)

65 years and over

15.7% (2024 est.) (male 47,583/female 53,645)

Birth rate

8.6 births/1,000 population (2024 est.)

Children under the age of 5 years underweight

NA

Contraceptive prevalence rate

NA

Current health expenditure

NA

Currently married women (ages 15-49)

53.5% (2023 est.)

Death rate

4.9 deaths/1,000 population (2024 est.)

Dependency ratios

elderly dependency ratio

16.9

potential support ratio

5.9 (2021 est.)

total dependency ratio

36.9

youth dependency ratio

20

Drinking water source

improved: rural

rural: NA

improved: total

total: 100% of population

improved: urban

urban: 100% of population

unimproved: rural

rural: NA

unimproved: total

total: 0% of population (2020)

unimproved: urban

urban: 0% of population

Education expenditures

6.3% of GDP (2020 est.)

Ethnic groups

Chinese 89.4%, Chinese and Portuguese 1%, Portuguese 0.8%, Chinese and non-Portuguese 0.2%, Portuguese and others 0.2%, other 8.5% (2021 est.)

Gross reproduction rate

0.6 (2024 est.)

Infant mortality rate

female

4.3 deaths/1,000 live births

male

4.5 deaths/1,000 live births

total

4.4 deaths/1,000 live births (2024 est.)

Languages

Languages

Cantonese 81%, Mandarin 4.7%, other Chinese dialects 5.4%, English 3.6%, Tagalog 2.9%, Portuguese 0.6%, other 1.8% (2021 est.)

major-language sample(s)

世界概况, 必須擁有的基本資料参考书 (Cantonese) The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.

note

note: Chinese and Portuguese are official languages; Macanese or Patua, a Portuguese-based Creole, is also spoken

Life expectancy at birth

female

88.3 years

male

82.5 years

total population

85.3 years (2024 est.)

Literacy

definition

age 15 and over can read and write

female

95.9% (2021)

male

98.5%

total population

97.1%

Major urban areas - population

682,000 Macau (2023)

Median age

female

43.1 years

male

41.5 years

total

42.5 years (2024 est.)

Nationality

adjective

Chinese

noun

Chinese

Net migration rate

3.1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2024 est.)

Physician density

NA

Population

female

339,438 (2024 est.)

male

304,988

total

644,426

Population distribution

population fairly equally distributed

Population growth rate

0.67% (2024 est.)

Religions

folk religion 58.9%, Buddhist 17.3%, Christian 7.2%, other 1.2%, none 15.4% (2020 est.)

School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education)

female

19 years (2021)

male

17 years

total

18 years

Sex ratio

0-14 years

1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years

0.87 male(s)/female

65 years and over

0.89 male(s)/female

at birth

1.05 male(s)/female

total population

0.9 male(s)/female (2024 est.)

Total fertility rate

1.24 children born/woman (2024 est.)

Urbanization

rate of urbanization

1.46% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

urban population

100% of total population (2023)

Administrative divisions

none (special administrative region of the People's Republic of China)

Citizenship

see China

Constitution

amendments

proposed by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress (NPC), the People’s Republic of China State Council, and the Macau Special Administrative Region; submittal of proposals to the NPC requires two-thirds majority vote by the Legislative Assembly of Macau, approval by two thirds of Macau's deputies to the NPC, and consent of the Macau chief executive; final passage requires approval by the NPC; amended 2005, 2012

history

previous 1976 (Organic Statute of Macau, under Portuguese authority); latest adopted 31 March 1993, effective 20 December 1999 (Basic Law of the Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China serves as Macau's constitution)

Country name

conventional long form

Macau Special Administrative Region

conventional short form

Macau

etymology

name is thought to derive from the A-Ma Temple - built in 1488 and dedicated to Mazu, the goddess of seafarers and fishermen - which is referred to locally as "Maa Gok" - and in Portuguese became "Macau"; the Chinese name Aomen means "inlet gates"

official long form

Aomen Tebie Xingzhengqu (Chinese)/ Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau (Portuguese)

official short form

Aomen (Chinese)/ Macau (Portuguese)

Dependency status

special administrative region of the People's Republic of China

Diplomatic representation from the US

embassy

the US has no offices in Macau; US Consulate General in Hong Kong is accredited to Macau

Diplomatic representation in the US

none (Special Administrative Region of China)

Executive branch

cabinet

Executive Council appointed by the chief executive

chief of state

President of China XI Jinping (since 14 March 2013)

election results

2024: Sam Hou FAI (unopposed; received 394 out of 400 votes)2019: HO lat Seng (unopposed; received 392 out of 400 votes)

elections/appointments

president indirectly elected by National People's Congress for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 10 March 2023 (next to be held in March 2028); chief executive chosen by a 400-member Election Committee for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 13 October 2024 (next to be held in 2029)

head of government

Chief Executive HO lat Seng (since 20 December 2019)

Flag description

green with a lotus flower above a stylized bridge and water in white, beneath an arc of five gold, five-pointed stars: one large in the center of the arc and two smaller on either side; the lotus is the floral emblem of Macau, the three petals represent the peninsula and two islands that make up Macau; the five stars echo those on the flag of China

Government type

executive-led limited democracy; a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China

Independence

none (special administrative region of China)

International organization participation

ICC (national committees), IHO, IMF, IMO (associate), Interpol (subbureau), ISO (correspondent), UNESCO (associate), UNWTO (associate), UPU, WCO, WMO, WTO

Judicial branch

highest court(s)

Court of Final Appeal of Macau Special Administrative Region (consists of the court president and 2 associate justices)

judge selection and term of office

justices appointed by the Macau chief executive upon the recommendation of an independent commission of judges, lawyers, and "eminent" persons; judge tenure NA

subordinate courts

Court of Second Instance; Court of First instance; Lower Court; Administrative Court

Legal system

civil law system based on the Portuguese model

Legislative branch

description

unicameral Legislative Assembly or Regiao Administrativa Especial de Macau (33 seats; 14 members directly elected by proportional representation vote, 12 indirectly elected by an electoral college of professional and commercial interest groups, and 7 appointed by the chief executive; members serve 4-year terms)

election results

percent of vote - ACUM 20.1%, UPD 18%, NE 13.8%, UMG 12.7%, UPP 11.4%, ABL 10.8%, PS 6.6%, other 6.6%; seats by political group - ACUM 3, UPD 2, UGM 2, UPP 2, ABL 2, NE 2, PS 1; composition - men NA, women NA, percentage women NA%

elections

last held on 12 September 2021 (next to be held in September 2025)

National anthem

note: as a Special Administrative Region of China, "Yiyongjun Jinxingqu" is the official anthem (see China)

National holiday

National Day (anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China), 1 October (1949); note - 20 December (1999) is celebrated as Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day

National symbol(s)

lotus blossom; national colors: green, white, yellow

Political parties

Alliance for a Happy Home or ABLAssociation of Synergy of Macau ("Synergy Power" or Poder da Singeria) or PS Macau-Guangdong Union or UGM New Hope or NE Union for Development or UPD Union for Promoting Progress or UPP or UNIPRO United Citizens Association of Macau or ACUM

note

note: there is no political party ordinance, so there are no registered political parties; politically active groups register as societies or companies

Suffrage

18 years of age in direct elections for some legislative positions, universal for permanent residents living in Macau for the past 7 years; note - indirect elections are limited to organizations registered as "corporate voters" and an election committee for the chief executive drawn from broad regional groupings, municipal organizations, central government bodies, and elected Macau officials

Agricultural products

pork, chicken, beef, eggs, pork offal, pork fat, pepper, beef offal, cattle hides, goose meat (2022)

note

note: top ten agricultural products based on tonnage

Budget

expenditures

$12.259 billion (2022 est.)

note

note: central government revenues (excluding grants) and expenses converted to US dollars at average official exchange rate for year indicated

revenues

$5.135 billion (2022 est.)

Credit ratings

Fitch rating

AA (2018)

Moody's rating

Aa3 (2016)

note

note: The year refers to the year in which the current credit rating was first obtained.

Current account balance

Current account balance 2020

$3.635 billion (2020 est.)

Current account balance 2021

$2.683 billion (2021 est.)

Current account balance 2022

$2.782 billion (2022 est.)

note

note: balance of payments - net trade and primary/secondary income in current dollars

Economic overview

high-income, Chinese special administrative region economy; known for apparel exports and gambling tourism; currency pegged to Hong Kong dollar; significant recession due to 2015 Chinese anticorruption campaign; COVID-19 further halved economic activity

Exchange rates

Currency

patacas (MOP) per US dollar -

Exchange rates 2019

8.07 (2019 est.)

Exchange rates 2020

7.989 (2020 est.)

Exchange rates 2021

8.006 (2021 est.)

Exchange rates 2022

8.065 (2022 est.)

Exchange rates 2023

8.063 (2023 est.)

Exports

Exports 2020

$15.578 billion (2020 est.)

Exports 2021

$28.163 billion (2021 est.)

Exports 2022

$20.985 billion (2022 est.)

note

note: balance of payments - exports of goods and services in current dollars

Exports - commodities

jewelry, garments, broadcasting equipment, precious metal watches, trunks and cases (2022)

note

note: top five export commodities based on value in dollars

Exports - partners

Hong Kong 65%, China 8%, US 7%, Switzerland 3%, Israel 2% (2022)

note

note: top five export partners based on percentage share of exports

GDP - composition, by end use

exports of goods and services

92.7% (2023 est.)

government consumption

13.7% (2023 est.)

household consumption

29% (2023 est.)

imports of goods and services

-49.3% (2023 est.)

investment in fixed capital

13.5% (2023 est.)

investment in inventories

0.4% (2023 est.)

note

note: figures may not total 100% due to rounding or gaps in data collection

GDP - composition, by sector of origin

industry

9.5% (2022 est.)

note

note: figures may not total 100% due to non-allocated consumption not captured in sector-reported data

services

90.1% (2022 est.)

GDP (official exchange rate)

$47.062 billion (2023 est.)

note

note: data in current dollars at official exchange rate

Imports

Imports 2020

$15.214 billion (2020 est.)

Imports 2021

$23.769 billion (2021 est.)

Imports 2022

$21.795 billion (2022 est.)

note

note: balance of payments - imports of goods and services in current dollars

Imports - commodities

jewelry, garments, electricity, broadcasting equipment, trunks and cases (2022)

note

note: top five import commodities based on value in dollars

Imports - partners

China 39%, Hong Kong 25%, France 5%, Italy 4%, US 3% (2022)

note

note: top five import partners based on percentage share of imports

Industrial production growth rate

-5.63% (2022 est.)

note

note: annual % change in industrial value added based on constant local currency

Industries

tourism, gambling, clothing, textiles, electronics, footwear, toys

Inflation rate (consumer prices)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2020

0.81% (2020 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2021

0.03% (2021 est.)

Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2022

1.05% (2022 est.)

note

note: annual % change based on consumer prices

Labor force

407,000 (2023 est.)

note

note: number of people ages 15 or older who are employed or seeking work

Public debt

Public debt 2017

0% of GDP (2017 est.)

Real GDP (purchasing power parity)

note

note: data in 2021 dollars

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2021

$50.626 billion (2021 est.)

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2022

$39.791 billion (2022 est.)

Real GDP (purchasing power parity) 2023

$71.837 billion (2023 est.)

Real GDP growth rate

note

note: annual GDP % growth based on constant local currency

Real GDP growth rate 2021

23.54% (2021 est.)

Real GDP growth rate 2022

-21.4% (2022 est.)

Real GDP growth rate 2023

80.53% (2023 est.)

Real GDP per capita

note

note: data in 2021 dollars

Real GDP per capita 2021

$73,700 (2021 est.)

Real GDP per capita 2022

$57,200 (2022 est.)

Real GDP per capita 2023

$102,000 (2023 est.)

Remittances

note

note: personal transfers and compensation between resident and non-resident individuals/households/entities

Remittances 2021

0.24% of GDP (2021 est.)

Remittances 2022

0.34% of GDP (2022 est.)

Remittances 2023

0.19% of GDP (2023 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold

note

note: holdings of gold (year-end prices)/foreign exchange/special drawing rights in current dollars

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 2021

$26.665 billion (2021 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 2022

$25.971 billion (2022 est.)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold 2023

$27.771 billion (2023 est.)

Taxes and other revenues

17.07% (of GDP) (2022 est.)

note

note: central government tax revenue as a % of GDP

Unemployment rate

note

note: % of labor force seeking employment

Unemployment rate 2021

2.25% (2021 est.)

Unemployment rate 2022

2.48% (2022 est.)

Unemployment rate 2023

2.25% (2023 est.)

Youth unemployment rate (ages 15-24)

female

5.3% (2023 est.)

male

9% (2023 est.)

note

note: % of labor force ages 15-24 seeking employment

total

7% (2023 est.)

Carbon dioxide emissions

from consumed natural gas

236,000 metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)

from petroleum and other liquids

1.511 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)

total emissions

1.746 million metric tonnes of CO2 (2022 est.)

Coal

imports

(2022 est.) less than 1 metric ton

Electricity

consumption

5.581 billion kWh (2022 est.)

imports

5.238 billion kWh (2022 est.)

installed generating capacity

437,000 kW (2022 est.)

transmission/distribution losses

150.268 million kWh (2022 est.)

Electricity access

electrification - total population

100% (2022 est.)

Electricity generation sources

biomass and waste

41.5% of total installed capacity (2022 est.)

fossil fuels

58.5% of total installed capacity (2022 est.)

Energy consumption per capita

Total energy consumption per capita 2022

69.034 million Btu/person (2022 est.)

Natural gas

consumption

120.337 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

imports

117.085 million cubic meters (2022 est.)

Petroleum

refined petroleum consumption

12,000 bbl/day (2022 est.)

Broadband - fixed subscriptions

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

32 (2020 est.)

total

208,000 (2020 est.)

Broadcast media

local government dominates broadcast media; 2 television stations operated by the government with one broadcasting in Portuguese and the other in Cantonese and Mandarin; 1 cable TV and 4 satellite TV services available; 3 radio stations broadcasting, of which 2 are government-operated (2019)

Internet country code

.mo

Internet users

percent of population

88% (2021 est.)

total

607,200 (2021 est.)

Telecommunication systems

domestic

fixed-line nearly 16 per 100 and mobile-cellular roughly 410 per 100 persons (2021)

general assessment

Macau’s economy and GDP have been on a roller coaster ride since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020; the Special Administrative Region (SAR) of China is heavily dependent on tourists coming from the mainland and Hong Kong to play in Macau’s many casinos, but the ensuing lock downs contributed to a dramatic fall in visitor numbers as well as income; this too, has had a major effect on the telecom sector (particularly in the mobile segment) with short-stay visitors as well as foreign workers on temporary-stay visas being forced to stay away.; total mobile subscription numbers are estimated to have dropped from a high of 2.8 million in 2019 (representing a whopping 442% penetration rate in a region with a population of just 700,000) to less than half that by the end of 2021: 1.3 million subscribers; Macau had almost the highest mobile penetration rate in the world; it is now sitting at a more ‘reasonable’ level of 200%; a significant bounce back can be expected to follow the easing of travel restrictions, although perhaps not up to the same lofty heights achieved in 2019; asecond factor behind the steep fall in 2020 was the introduction of a Cyber Security Law that required all prepaid SIM cards to become registered or face being deactivated in October 2020; the combined effect of the pandemic and the new restrictions meant that prepaid subscriber numbers fell by more than 80%; postpaid accounts, largely the domain of Macau’s permanent residents, were barely affected by the external upheaval; they continued to increase in number, year-on-year, and provided better returns to the operators thanks to substantially increased data usage during the lock downs; the mobile broadband market has experienced the same dramatic fluctuations as the broader mobile segment over the last two years, at least in terms of subscriber numbers; but this is largely because mobile broadband uptake is inextricably tied to the base mobile offering in Macau; with total mobile broadband data traffic going up, not down, between 2019 and 2021, that again points to the strength of the contract segment helping to drive future growth in Macau’s telecom sector (2022)

international

country code - 853; landing point for the SEA-ME-WE-3 submarine cable network that provides links to Asia, Africa, Australia, the Middle East, and Europe; HF radiotelephone communication facility; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) (2019)

Telephones - fixed lines

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

13 (2022 est.)

total subscriptions

92,000 (2022 est.)

Telephones - mobile cellular

subscriptions per 100 inhabitants

175 (2022 est.)

total subscriptions

1.213 million (2022 est.)

Airports

1 (2024)

Civil aircraft registration country code prefix

B-M

Heliports

4 (2024)

Merchant marine

by type

other 5

total

5 (2023)

National air transport system

annual freight traffic on registered air carriers

31.84 million (2018) mt-km

annual passenger traffic on registered air carriers

3,157,724 (2018)

inventory of registered aircraft operated by air carriers

21 (registered in China)

number of registered air carriers

1 (2020) (registered in China)

Ports

key ports

Macau

medium

1

ports with oil terminals

1

total ports

1 (2024)

Roadways

paved

428 km (2017)

total

428 km

Military - note

defense is the responsibility of China; the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) maintains a garrison in Macau

Military and security forces

no regular indigenous military forces; Macau Public Security Police Force (includes the Police Intervention Tactical Unit or UTIP for counterterrorism operations)

Illicit drugs

Asian organized crime groups involved in drug trafficking and money laundering  

Trafficking in persons

tier rating

Tier 3 — Macau does not fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not making significant efforts to do so, therefore, Macau remained on Tier 3; for more details, go to:  https://www.state.gov/reports/2024-trafficking-in-persons-report/macau/

Air pollutants

carbon dioxide emissions

2.07 megatons (2016 est.)

Climate

subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers

Environment - current issues

air pollution; coastal waters pollution; insufficient policies in reducing and recycling solid wastes; increasing population density worsening noise pollution

Land use

agricultural land

0% (2018 est.)

other

100% (2018 est.)

Revenue from coal

0% of GDP (2018 est.)

Revenue from forest resources

0% of GDP (2018 est.)

Urbanization

rate of urbanization

1.46% annual rate of change (2020-25 est.)

urban population

100% of total population (2023)

Waste and recycling

municipal solid waste generated annually

377,942 tons (2016 est.)

municipal solid waste recycled annually

75,588 tons (2014 est.)

percent of municipal solid waste recycled

20% (2014 est.)