Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that both the general unemployment rate (2.6%) and the unemployment rate of local residents (3.3%) for May - July 2023 decreased by 0.2 percentage points from the previous period (April - June 2023). Besides, the underemployment rate dropped by 0.1 percentage point to 1.7%.

The labour force living in Macao totalled 372,800 and the labour force participation rate was 67.6%. Total employment was 363,000 and the number of employed residents totalled 282,900, up by 1,600 and 300 respectively from the previous period. Analysed by industry, employment in Retail Trade and the Construction sector increased, while that in the Transport & Storage sector decreased.

Number of the unemployed dropped by 600 from the previous period to 9,800. Among the unemployed searching for a new job, most of them were previously engaged in the Construction sector, Hotels, Restaurants & Similar Activities and Gaming & Junket Activities. Meanwhile, the proportion of new labour market entrants seeking their first job rose by 1.3 percentage points to 8.6% of the total unemployed.

Number of the underemployed went down by 400 from the previous period to 6,400, with the majority working in the Construction sector and the Transport & Storage sector.

In comparison with May - July 2022, the labour force participation rate, the unemployment rate and the underemployment rate decreased by 0.6, 1.5 and 11.7 percentage points respectively.

The Employment Survey covers all residential units in the Macao Peninsula, Taipa and Coloane, excluding collective living quarters such as dormitories and care homes for the elderly. Individuals living in these units are included in the survey, and therefore Macao residents and non-resident workers who work in Macao but live outside the territory are excluded. According to the preliminary estimates from the movement records, an average of about 91,200 Macao residents and non-resident workers worked in Macao but lived outside the territory during the reference period; when including these individuals, total labour force was 464,000, an increase of 2,600 from the previous period.