Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that, according to the information obtained from the interviewed establishments before the catastrophic typhoon on 23 August, 40% of the interviewed restaurants & similar establishments reported a year-on-year growth in receipts in July 2017, down by 5 percentage points from June. The corresponding proportions of Western Restaurants (20%) and Local Style Cafes, Congee & Noodle Shops (39%) went down by 25 and 9 percentage points respectively, while the share of Chinese Restaurants (51%) increased by 7 percentage points. On the other hand, 35% of the establishments recorded a year-on-year decline in receipts, up by 2 percentage points from June. The corresponding proportions of Western Restaurants (65%) and Local Style Cafes, Congee & Noodle Shops (37%) rose by 25 and 12 percentage points respectively, whereas the share of Chinese Restaurants (23%) dropped by 16 percentage points.

As regards retail trade, 49% of the interviewed retailers reported a year-on-year sales increase in July 2017, up by 3 percentage points from June. The corresponding proportions of Motor Vehicle Retailers (67%), Watches, Clocks & Jewellery Retailers (72%) and Department Stores (44%) climbed by 22, 17 and 11 percentage points respectively. As in the previous month, all of the interviewed Leather Goods Retailers, 50% of the Adults’ Clothing Retailers and 40% of the Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles Retailers showed a year-on-year sales growth; however, the corresponding share of Supermarkets dropped by 11 percentage points to 44%. On the other hand, 27% of the interviewed retailers registered a year-on-year sales decrease, down by 7 percentage points over June. The corresponding proportions of Motor Vehicle Retailers and Department Stores both fell by 33 percentage points, while the share of Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles Retailers grew by 10 percentage points. Meanwhile, none of the interviewed Watches, Clocks & Jewellery Retailers showed a year-on-year sales decline.

Before the typhoon hit Macao, the interviewed restaurants & similar establishments expected a slight improvement in their business in August, with 32% anticipating a year-on-year rise in receipts, up by 4 percentage points from July. Among the various types of establishments, 52% of Chinese Restaurants predicted a year-on-year increase in receipts in August, up by 14 percentage points over July, while the corresponding shares of Japanese & Korean Restaurants (31%) and Western Restaurants (15%) reduced by 6 and 5 percentage points respectively. On the other hand, the proportion of establishments expecting a year-on-year decline in receipts edged up by 1 percentage point to 39%. The corresponding proportion of Local Style Cafes, Congee & Noodle Shops rose by 8 percentage points, whereas the shares of Western Restaurants and Japanese & Korean Restaurants remained unchanged as in July.

Prior to the strike of the typhoon, retailers expected no significant change in their business in August. The proportion of interviewed retailers predicting a year-on-year sales increase in August held steady at 24% as in July. Among the various types of retailers, the proportion of Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles Retailers (30%) foreseeing a year-on-year sales growth rose by 20 percentage points. As in the previous month, 80% of the Leather Goods Retailers, 39% of the Watches, Clocks & Jewellery Retailers, 22% of the Supermarkets and 20% of the Adults’ Clothing Retailers anticipated a year-on-year sales growth. On the other hand, 33% of the interviewed retailers expected a year-on-year sales decline, down by 5 percentage points over July. The corresponding proportion of Department Stores fell by 22 percentage points from July, while the share of Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles Retailers climbed by 20 percentage points. Besides, 78% of the Motor Vehicle Retailers expected their sales to remain stable year-on-year in August.

The sample of the Business Climate Survey on Restaurants & Similar Establishments and Retail Trade was selected based on the value of receipts of the establishments, comprising 167 restaurants & similar establishments (accounting for 53% of the industry’s receipts) and 135 retailers (accounting for 70% of the industry’s receipts). The Survey results were not extrapolated and only reflect the assessment of the business performance and expectations of the sample restaurants and retailers.