Macau Business. January 2022. by Keith Morrison – Author and educationist.
New year; old problem. As the pandemic rolls on, so many calls for economic diversification in Macau as a survival strategy have been heard, loud and long, that, as the law of diminishing returns tells us, their effects recede. Macau still looks to tourism and gaming as the path to economic salvation, with a tiny sideways nod to a bit of Traditional Chinese Medicine, a few sports here and there, whispers of financial services developments wafting in on a gentle breeze of fairyland optimism, and a rather poor joke about offering health tourism.
At the same time, life continues to be difficult for many people in Macau. Between the start of the pandemic (first quarter of 2020) and the end of the third quarter of 2021, as prices rose, the median income of 48 per cent of full-time employees declined; it flat-lined for 36 per cent and increased for only 12 per cent (e.g. professionals). The already low-paid suffer the most. Incomes for many in Macau have worsened; survival and economic recovery are uppermost. Change must happen. See More
