Macau Cuts Base Rate by 25 Bps After Fed Decision
2025-10-30 00:50
By
Chusnul Chotimah
1 min. read
The Macau Monetary Authority lowered its base rate by 25 basis points to 4.25% on October 30, 2025, mirroring the move by the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) after the US Federal Reserve cut interest rates.
It was the second rate cut this year in the Chinese special administrative region, bringing borrowing costs to their lowest level since November 2022.
The decision came amid elevated unemployment despite robust GDP growth.
Recent data showed that Macau’s jobless rate held at 2.0% in August, the highest since March 2024.
Meanwhile, GDP grew 5.1% year-on-year in Q2 2025, the strongest expansion since Q2 2024, rebounding from a 1.3% contraction in Q1.
However, the annual inflation rate accelerated to 0.47% in September, the fastest pace in eight months.
Under the linked exchange rate system, Macau’s base rate is set at par with Hong Kong’s base rate, which is typically 50 basis points above the lower end of the target range for the US federal funds rate.