Macau’s chief executive Sam Hou Fai today warned of “supply chain disruptions” and other challenges posed to the city’s economic development by recent geopolitical shifts and international conflicts.
Macau, “as a small, open economy highly dependent on the outside world, faces multiple uncertainties and challenges,” Sam Hou Fai said in his opening address at the first 2026 session of the region’s Economic Development Council, calling on the business leaders present to prepare for those challenges and to encourage investment and diversification of the local economy, which is heavily dependent on the gaming industry.
“Currently, in the context of the accelerated evolution and unprecedented transformation of the past century across the globe, geopolitical conflicts continue to intensify, global economic recovery faces obstacles and various uncertainty factors overlap with supply chain disruptions, making the external development environment significantly more complex, serious and uncertain,” the chief executive said.
Sam Hou Fai also indicated that the Macau government will assess possible “convergence points” with China’s 15th Five-Year Plan, approved this month during the National People’s Congress and Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference meetings — the “Two Sessions” — in Beijing. China set a GDP growth target of 4.5% to 5% for 2026 at these meetings, the lowest since 1991, signalling a focus on stability and quality over speed, and prioritising strategic investment, technology and domestic consumption.
Macau’s GDP per capita grew 4.3% in 2025, surpassing €63,600 — the second highest in Asia. However, ratings agency Fitch has forecast that the territory’s GDP growth will slow to 4% in 2026, as “weaker” economic conditions will “increasingly weigh on Chinese tourists.”
Read more: Macau’s chief executive points to economic diversification and Hengqin as priorities
“Macau faces numerous development challenges, but we hope to move forward together. The Greater Bay Area is advancing with clearly visible results, and the new wave of technology has injected new development momentum. We must be mindful of adversity, preventing risks and taking the pulse of national development,” Sam said.
The Greater Bay Area is a Beijing project to create a world-class metropolitan region integrating Hong Kong, Macau and nine cities in Guangdong province — a region of around 86 million inhabitants with a GDP exceeding one trillion euros.
Sam called on business leaders to “be prepared to seize opportunities, strengthening investment in Hengqin so as to inject new vitality,” and to closely monitor issues of imbalance and difficulties faced by small and medium-sized enterprises. The central government established the Hengqin In-Depth Cooperation Zone, adjacent to Macau, as a special economic area to support diversification of the SAR’s economy.
