Development and Regulation of the Retail Industry for Gold and Silver Accessories

Retail of gold accessories is one of the traditional industries of Macao, being dated back to the time of the Qing dynasty. During its heyday in the 1940s, dozens of retail shops were concentrated along Rua dos Mercadores, Rua das Estalagens and Rua de Cinco de Outubro.

Back in the day when fishing industry was thriving in Macao, the Rua das Estalagens was the popular area where fishermen shop for daily commodities, particularly fabrics and gold accessories, which were their favorites. By today, the shoppers are mostly locals and tourists from the Mainland China.

In 2003, the Macao government promulgated Law no. 1/2003 to regulate the retail of gold articles in the city by defining the standards of their fineness of gold. It also requires retailers to engrave, stamp or imprint the fineness mark onto the gold articles and to issue an invoice or receipt for their buyers to put them at ease with the purchase.