News

According to statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, new SME lending approved by Macao banks dropped in the first half of 2012. Concurrently, the utilisation of SME credit in proportion to the credit limit approved by banks recorded a slight contraction. New Lending Approved In the first half of 2012, new SME credit limit approved by Macao banks totalled MOP7.0 billion, down by 58.8% from the second half year of 2011 or 36.1% from the same period last year. The collateralised ratio, which indicates the proportion of credit limit with tangible assets pledged, was 60.4%, down 0.3 percentage points when compared with the last survey period but up by 6.7 percentage points when compared with the same period of 2011. Credit Utilisation As at end-June 2012, the outstanding value of total SME loans dropped 7.3% from end-December 2011 but up 1.8% from a year earlier to MOP31.2 billion. When compared with end-December 2011, SME loans to "electricity, gas and water" and "education" increased at respective rates of 92.0% and 44.2%, whereas those to "transport, warehouse and communications", "non-monetary financial institutions" and "wholesale and retail trade" dropped 72.5%, 19.0% and 18.6% respectively. The utilisation rate, defined as the proportion of outstanding credit balance to the credit limit granted, dropped slightly by 0.6 percentage points from six months ago to 59.2%. Delinquent Loans At the end of June 2012, the outstanding balance of delinquent SME loans decreased by 16.8% from six months ago to MOP428.5 million. Compared to a year ago, the balance dropped slightly by 0.4%. The delinquency ratio, a ratio of delinquent loans outstanding balance to total SME loans outstanding, dropped 0.16 percentage points from end-2011 or 0.03 percentage points from a year earlier to 1.37%.
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The new academic year of 2012/13 began with a warm welcome of 425 students joining the IFT family. To mark the commencement of this semester and to gain a better understanding of the tourism industry, the Institute has the honour to invite Ms. Helena Fernandes, Acting Director of Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) to introduce the development of Macao's tourism industry and discuss professional attributes leading to a successful career.
Ms. Helena Fernandes enlightened the freshmen with information including current development of the industry, visitation projections, tourists' profiles, MGTO's promotion strategy, and upcoming MICE activities, etc. Students were set on a good start and expected to make good use of these information in their studies.
Dr. Fanny Vong, President of IFT purposely reiterated the importance of fostering high standard of personal qualities throughout students' studies in IFT. Tourism and services industry is a people-oriented business, full of 'human touch points', required individuals with self-cultivation, positive attitude, proper grooming and attire, professional ethics and 'just right' services to create memorable experience to customers. IFT has always focused on nurturing students within these parameters to prepare them for future challenges in this dynamic industry.
The event ended with an interactive Q&A session with guest speakers, where students enthusiastically asked macro questions regarding the future of Macao's tourism industry, Macao SAR Government's strategy in further developing the tourism and gaming industry, as well as personal questions like career planning and choices.
IFT regularly invites well-known scholars, industry leaders and managers to host seminars or to share their experiences with students, bringing best practices and updated trends of the industry to the study environment.
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2012/13 IFT Degree Programme Student Orientation Ceremony was held on the 23rd August with the presence of IFT academic team, degree programme freshmen and exchange students. President of IFT, Dr. Fanny Vong presented her warmest welcome to the new comers during the ceremony. Dr. Vong expressed that the 425 new students should well equipped themselves in these 4 years of study and be ready for the rapid development of Macao and the neighbouring regions. In order to nurture industry professionals with international sight, IFT is always focusing on internationalisation from internship programmes, exchange programmes and to academic staff qualifications, etc.. Dr. Vong also hoped that students could use their creative minds to analyze future development trends, grab opportunities and face challenges. In last semester, PATA Macau Student Chapter was established with IFT students being the chairlady and the core members. IFT looks forward to the establishment of Student Chapter in strengthening student cooperation among local higher institutions, encouraging youngsters to speak out their creative opinion and nurturing future tourism professionals. Besides, a charity event, held by IFT students last year, putting together over 20,000 postcards to shape Macau's scenery and famous sightseeing spots, not only had successfully raised funds for charities, but also was awarded the Guinness world record. Dr. Vong wished that students could continue to unit and help each other, participate in charity actively and serve the community.
Applications for academic year 2012/13 degree programmes was satisfactory, the number has exceeded 6 times of the intake number, implying that young generation in Macao is looking forward to the future development of tourism industry. During the ceremony, the Institute also announced and presented Scholarship, Dean's List and the Extra-curricular Activity Award to students as an encouragement, hoping that they can actively involve in extra-curricular activities in their spare time besides study. Being one of the public high institutes in Macao, IFT will continue cultivating professionals for tourism industry, offering more dynamic courses to cope with Macao's rapid development and growing together with students and Macao.
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The Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) released results of the Survey on Manpower Needs and Wages of the Gaming Sector for the second quarter of 2012. Survey coverage excluded junket promoters and junket associates. At the end of the second quarter of 2012, the Gaming Sector had 52,789 employees, up by 11.6% year-on-year. By occupation 23,144 were dealers, up by 11.2% year-on-year; 14,424 were hard & soft count clerks, cage cashiers, pit bosses, casino floorpersons, betting service operators, etc., up by 15.2%. In June 2012, average earnings (excluding bonuses and allowances) of full-time employees stood at MOP17,740, up by 7.8% year-on-year, of which average earnings of dealers increased by 8.6% over June 2011 to MOP15,810 and that of hard & soft count clerks, cage cashiers, pit bosses, casino floorpersons, betting service operators, etc. rose by 5.8% to MOP21,600. Average earnings of casino & slot machine attendants, security guards, surveillance room operators, etc. amounted to MOP11,990, up by 13.5% year-on-year. At the end of the second quarter of 2012, number of job vacancies totalled 1,821, down by 321 year-on-year. Vacancies for dealers stood at 787, while 366 were for hard & soft count clerks, cage cashiers, pit bosses, casino floorpersons, betting service operators, etc., down by 1.6% and 52.0% respectively. In terms of recruitment prerequisites, 50.7% of the vacancies required working experience; 62.3% required junior secondary education or lower and 18.6% required senior secondary education. Besides Cantonese, other preferred language skills were Mandarin (84.0%) and English (63.3%). In the second quarter of 2012, 4,278 new employees were hired, lower than the 5,182 recruits in the fourth quarter of 2011, bringing the employee recruitment rate down by 2.4 percentage points to 8.4%; at the same time, the employee turnover rate (5.9%) and job vacancy rate (3.4%) fell by 0.7 and 1.0 percentage point respectively, indicating a slowdown in the demand of human resources.
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The Monetary Authority of Macao (AMCM) releases today the preliminary balance of payments (BOP) of Macao SAR for the reference year 2011. The BOP is a statistical statement that summarises external transactions of an economy with the rest of the world. In 2011, Macao recorded an overall BOP surplus of MOP81.6 billion. Among the major components, the current account registered a surplus of MOP136.0 billion. The capital account had a net outflow of MOP1.1 billion and financial non-reserve assets showed a net decrease of MOP9.9 billion. Merchandise imports, valued at f.o.b., surged by 36.0% in 2011, reflecting buoyant local consumption and increased visitor spending. Meanwhile, merchandise exports grew by 6.3% after four consecutive years of contraction. With the notable rise in imports and a relatively mild increase in exports, the merchandise trade deficit went up from MOP44.1 billion in 2010 to MOP62.5 billion in 2011. On the other hand, strong exports of travel services drove the surplus in the services account up from MOP169.7 billion to MOP235.8 billion. The income account, which reflects cross-border flows of factor income, recorded a net outflow of MOP33.0 billion in 2011, considerably higher than the net outflow of MOP23.0 billion recorded in the previous year. This stemmed mainly from the increase in income earned by foreign direct investors in Macao. Current transfers, which include mainly inflows and outflows of workers' remittances as well as donations received/made by local social service organisations with respect to the rest of the world, recorded a net outflow of MOP4.3 billion, representing a decrease of MOP1.6 billion from 2010. With the large invisible trade surplus offsetting the deficit in merchandise trade as well as net outflows of factor income and current transfers, the current account surplus reached MOP136.0 billion, up markedly by MOP39.4 billion from the revised surplus of MOP96.7 billion in 2010. Flows in the capital account reversed from a net inflow of MOP0.2 billion in 2010 to a net outflow of MOP1.1 billion in 2011. Net financial non-reserve assets registered a net inflow of MOP9.9 billion, compared to a net outflow of MOP10.0 billion in 2010. Of which, net inflows of direct investment decreased from MOP30.4 billion in 2010 to MOP16.5 billion in 2011 while portfolio investment recorded a net outflow of MOP15.1 billion, up from MOP6.7 billion in 2010. Concurrently, other investment shifted to a net inflow of MOP8.9 billion in 2011 from a net outflow of MOP33.7 billion in 2010. Net outflow of financial derivatives amounted to MOP350.7 million, up from MOP64.7 million recorded in the previous year. Reserve assets in the BOP records the net change in foreign currency assets (excluding the SAR Reserve Fund) held by the Monetary Authority of Macao. In 2011, reserve assets, after price, exchange rate and other adjustments, went up by MOP81.6 billion, as compared to an increase of MOP41.3 billion in 2010. Macao's BOP statistics are compiled in accordance with the International Monetary Fund's Balance of Payments Manual, Fifth Edition. The current release incorporates preliminary estimates of key statistics, and a detailed report with revised data will be published in December 2012.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that visitor arrivals decreased by 4.2% year-on-year to 2,444,264 in July 2012; same-day visitors (1,196,291) accounted for 48.9% of the total. The average length of stay of visitors stood at 1.0 day, down by 0.1 day year-on-year, with the overnight and same-day visitors staying 1.8 days and 0.2 day respectively. Analysed by place of residence, visitors from Mainland China decreased slightly by 0.3% year-on-year to 1,456,351, coming mostly from Guangdong Province (683,285), Fujian Province (70,439) and Zhejiang Province (56,937); Mainland visitors travelling under the Individual Visit Scheme rose by 4.1% to 643,147. Visitors from the Republic of Korea (36,030) and Japan (35,132) increased by 2.0% and 20.1% year-on-year respectively, while those from Hong Kong (639,580) and Taiwan, China (112,263) both registered a decrease of 11.1%. Long-haul visitors from the Americas (25,648), Europe (19,085) and Oceania (9,209) also decreased by 7.5%, 7.6% and 9.4% respectively. In the first seven months of 2012, visitor arrivals totalled 16,021,978 but the rate of increase narrowed to 1.4% year-on-year. Visitors from Mainland China (9,567,563), the Republic of Korea (250,815) and Japan (241,265) increased by 7.1%, 8.7% and 15.6% respectively. On the contrary, visitors from Hong Kong (4,113,909) and Taiwan, China (613,654) decreased by 7.4% and 15.5% respectively.
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According to the statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, the proportion of international business in the local banking sector contracted slightly in the second quarter of 2012. At end-June 2012, the share of international assets in total banking assets dropped to 83.3% from 84.1% at end-March 2012, while the share of international liabilities in total banking liabilities shrank to 80.2% from 80.8%. Foreign currencies were the dominant denomination in international banking transactions. At end-June 2012, the shares of Pataca (MOP) in total international assets and total international liabilities were 0.4% and 1.7% respectively. Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) and Other Foreign Currencies (OFCs) accounted for 37.5% and 62.2% of total international assets as well as 45.2% and 53.0% of total international liabilities respectively. International Banking Assets
At end-June 2012, total international assets went up by 2.1% from a quarter earlier or 13.2% from a year ago to MOP610.9 billion (USD76.4 billion). Within this total, external assets and local assets in foreign currencies expanded year-on-year by 13.6% to MOP467.3 billion and 11.9% to MOP143.6 billion respectively. As a major component of international assets, external loans & deposits increased by 12.5% to MOP437.0 billion. In particular, cross-border non-bank loans expanded by 27.1%. International Banking Liabilities
Total international liabilities advanced by 2.4% from three months ago or 17.8% year-on-year to MOP587.9 billion (USD73.6 billion). Of this total, external liabilities and local liabilities in foreign currencies grew year-on-year by 14.8% to MOP316.3 billion and 21.5% to MOP271.6 billion respectively. Foreign currency deposits held by residents continued to form a major component of international liabilities. This type of deposits grew by 20.5% to MOP250.0 billion at end-June 2012 from MOP207.5 billion at end-June 2011. Concurrently, overseas non-bank deposits increased by 36.6%. Breakdown of External Banking Assets and Liabilities by Region
The majority of external assets and liabilities were related to the regions of Asia and Europe. At end-June 2012, claims on Hong Kong and Mainland China occupied 33.7% and 27.1% of total external assets respectively, while claims on Portugal and Luxembourg took up 10.3% and 2.6% correspondingly. On external liabilities, Hong Kong and Japan accounted for 43.5% and 12.5% of the total respectively while France and Portugal took up respective shares of 5.0% and 2.5%. The compilation of International Banking Statistics follows the methodology advocated by the Bank for International Settlements in order to facilitate Macao SAR's participation in the "Locational International Banking Statistics" project of the international organisation.
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24th Macau International Fireworks Display Contest will be held at the sea area in front of the Macau Tower on September 8, 15, 22, 29 and October 1. Macau International Fireworks Display Contest is organized by Macau Government Tourist Office. During the press conference, Director of Macau Government Tourist Office, João Manuel Costa Antunes introduced the situation of the contest this year. Director João Manuel Costa Antunes expressed that Macau International Fireworks Display Contest has reached the 24th this year; he was delighted that the contest has lighted up the Macau sky with dazzling fireworks for the past 23 years, bestowing unforgettable and beautiful memories upon both visitors and citizens. Macau International Fireworks Display Contest will be marching into the celebration of silver anniversary next year. He stated that in order to enhance spectators' enjoyment of the contest and to enrich the performance elements of the fireworks, MGTO will raise the subsidy given to the participating teams for fireworks materials by 25%, i.e. up to USD25,000, starting this year, while also increasing the correspondent support for fireworks materials delivery expense. Furthermore, to celebrate the silver anniversary for Macau International Fireworks Display Contest next year, MGTO will organize the Trophy Design Contest, which will not only foster participation and a deeper sense of involvement among the public but also inspire creativity among local design talents. 24th Macau International Fireworks Display Contest will be held at the sea area in front of the Macau Tower between September 8 and October 1. Among the show days, October 1 is China's National Day, on which the contest will feature the fireworks teams from Italy and Mainland China. Over the past years, there were world-acclaimed fireworks companies participating in the Macau International Fireworks Display Contest. The 10 teams which are taking part in the contest this year include (in the contest order) Korea; Thailand; Taiwan, China; United States; Portugal; France; Japan; Australia; Italy and Mainland China. Among the contestant teams, the fireworks companies from France and Italy are staging their first performance in the contest. Coming on stage the first time, The French fireworks company, Lacroix-Ruggieri prides itself on over 250 years of pyrotechnic experience, being the authority among its trade in Europe. The company made a special effort in studying and developing fireworks colors and new performances effects, and won the champion in the World Fireworks Championship in 2010. Another new team this year is Orzella Fireworks, an Italian fireworks company established in 1884 and devoted to creations which combine fireworks effects and music for years. The other 8 teams took part in the Macau fireworks display contest before, with many of them awarded in top ranks. Once the third winner in the contest, Foti International Fireworks Pty Ltd. is the largest fireworks manufacturer and displaying team in Australia and hosted the fireworks performance during the opening and closing ceremony of Sydney Olympics as well as the New Year Eve fireworks show in Sydney. Marutamaya Ogatsu Fireworks Co., Ltd. from Japan took part in the Macau contest twice, winning the first and third place individually. The team is renowned for its hand-made spherical fireworks, and staged over 200 performances in 47 countries and regions in the past 60 years, thus very rich in experience. The fireworks company from United States, Pyro Spectaculars by Souza once took part and won the second place in the Macau contest. Moreover, the team has done worldwide performance, including three Olympic Games and the World Cup 2002. On the other hand, Pirotecnia Minhota, Lda. from Portugal is one of the earliest teams which participated in the Macau contest and once the first winner, while it is the third time for the winner in title of the contest Panda Fireworks Group Co. Ltd from Mainland China to join the competition. The fireworks teams from Korea, Thailand and Taiwan, China are also joining the Macau International Fireworks Display Contest this year again. All the teams will compete against each other to put on a myriad of magnificent fireworks, making beautiful memories for visitors and citizens. Each participating team is requested again this year to complement their display with music to enthrall the audience with a light and sound spectacular. To enhance the enjoyment, the organizer will install sound systems at the waterfront of the Macau Tower Outdoor Plaza, at the Macau Tower Street seaside and at the square in front of Kun Iam Statue on Ave. Dr Sun Yat Sen so that the public can enjoy synchronized music to the spectacular displays. Spectators are able to listen to live music of the fireworks displays through TDM - Radio Macau's Chinese Channel live broadcast at FM100.7. MGTO has joined hands with Companhia de Telecomunicações de Macau S.A.R.L. (CTM) since 2010 to co-launch "Macau International Fireworks Display Contest SMS Game". The game has gained positive feedbacks with 1120 and 1986 text messages received in 2010 and 2011 respectively. MGTO will continue its cooperation with CTM to jointly present the SMS Game this year in order to foster citizens' participation in the event. During the contest period, CTM will send out text messages to their mobile subscribers and introduce the game, in addition to promoting the SMS game on the MGTO and CTM websites. Macau citizens can send a text message to CTM through their mobile to vote for their favorite team after each night of fireworks display. Citizens who have voted for the most popular team on that night are eligible for the lucky draw which will grant one winner with two sets of reservoir stand tickets for the 59th Macau Grand Prix (Saturday and Sunday) and souvenir. The 5 fireworks teams who get the most SMS votes will be awarded with "The People's Choice" certificates and souvenirs. Nevertheless, the voting result will not affect the jury's decision on the fireworks display contest. MGTO will also post web banners on CTM's website to enhance the promotion efficiency. MGTO is striving to present the world's most prominent international fireworks display, an annual spectacular attraction visitors can't miss, while actively promoting the fireworks display contest this year through various international, regional and local media promotion channels, including advertisements broadcast through international media in neighboring regions, promotion through primary media and travel magazines as well as poster and leaflet distribution. MGTO and the General Union of Neighbors Association of Macau will jointly present the Fireworks Carnival to add more fun and colors to the fireworks display nights and to reinforce the reputation of Macau as a remarkable travel destination. Last year, over 25,000 individuals attended the Fireworks Carnival which lasted for 5 days. In order to capture the spectacular sceneries of the fireworks display contest, photography and drawing competitions will be held again this year. This year, MGTO will add new categories to Macau International Fireworks Display Contest Student Drawing Competition and Photo Competition. Besides the two existing categories, a new category of 15 – 18 years old will be added to the student drawing competition; in this new category, first, second and third prizes as well as 2 outstanding awards and 10 consolation prizes will be awarded likewise. On the other hand, a high-school and college student category of 17 – 24 years old will be added to the Photo Competition besides the existing public category and similarly, first, second and third prizes as well as 4 outstanding awards and 10 consolation prizes will be awarded in the new category. In the newly-launched Trophy Design Contest, first, second and third prizes will be awarded. In addition, the award-winning works may be used as the design of real trophies given to the firework teams in commemoration. The three competitions accept applications effective from today. The award ceremony of the last Macau International Fireworks Display Contest Student Drawing Competition and Photo Competition will take place on August 30.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the Composite CPI (117.54) for July 2012 increased by 6.04% year-on-year, attributable to rising charges for meals bought away from home and dearer prices of vegetable. For the 12 months ended July 2012, the average Composite CPI increased by 6.45% from the preceding period; the average CPI-A and CPI-B also rose by 6.45% and 6.67% respectively. In comparison with July 2011, notable increase was observed in the price index of Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+32.47%); Housing & Fuels (+8.36%); and Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+8.20%) on account of dearer prices of vegetable and rising charges for meals bought away from home; however, price index of Communication decreased by 6.53%. The CPI-A (117.05) and CPI-B (118.11) increased by 6.40% and 6.24% respectively year-on-year. The Composite CPI increased by 0.37% month-to-month, higher charges for out-patient services, outbound package tours, taxi fare and airfare pushed up the price index of Health; Recreation & Culture; and Transport by 1.36%, 1.23% and 1.14% respectively. On the contrary, price index of Clothing & Footwear fell by 1.96% upon seasonal sale of Summer clothing. The CPI-A and CPI-B increased by 0.42% and 0.31% month-to-month. The average Composite CPI for the first seven months of 2012 increased by 6.37% year-on-year, of which the price index of Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+29.66%); and Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+9.34%) saw noticeable increase, while that of Communication decreased by 6.50%. The CPI-A and CPI-B for the first seven months of 2012 rose by 6.53% and 6.62% respectively year-on-year. The 2008/2009-based Composite CPI reflects the impact of price changes on the general population. The CPI-A relates to about 50% of the households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP6,000 to MOP18,999. The CPI-B relates to about 30% of the households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP19,000 to MOP34,999.
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Organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau and co-organised by Casa de Portugal in Macao, the exhibition From East to West – The Wonderful World of Puppets is now open to the public at Tap Seac Gallery. This event showcases more than 140 puppets from the collection of Portuguese puppetry specialist Elisa Vilaça. The collection has been amassed since the 1980s and gathers puppets from many parts of the world including Mainland China, Myanmar, Indonesia and Thailand, as well as the United Kingdom, Portugal, the Czech Republic and Brazil. It offers visitors a more complete understanding of this traditional craft through the varied approaches taken by artisans with diverse cultural backgrounds. Born in 1955 in Porto, Portugal, Elisa Vilaça has a Master's Degree in Portuguese Studies with a speciality in History and is currently studying for her doctoral degree in Museology. Over the last 30 years, her professional career has been related to education, and puppets have always served as an educational tool in her teaching. Having resided in Macao between 1982 and 2002, she returned to the territory in October 2011 to implement a project of her design for the creation of a "Macao Puppet Museum". The origins of her puppet collection can be traced back to her childhood, when the fascination she felt seeing these inanimate objects come to life began. She hopes this exhibition will impart to the public a better and broader understanding of this ancient tradition. The exhibition route takes visitors "from East to West", highlighting the development of the puppet craft with a view to the historical, cultural and geographical backgrounds of the various countries of origin. It introduces exhibition-goers to the various types of puppets – glove, string, rod and shadow – produced through the integration of painting and sculptural techniques and using a comprehensive range of materials. The exhibition treats these objects as a bridge between the various cultures of our world, stimulating the creativity and imagination of viewers. Present at the opening ceremony, that took place Friday the 17th, were the Deputy Director of the Department of Education and Culture of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macao S.A.R., Zhang Xiaoguang; the Deputy Director-General of the International Organizations and Legal Affairs Department of the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Macao S.A.R., Zhang Yunfei; the President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao S.A.R. Government, Ung Vai Meng; the President of the Casa de Portugal in Macao, Maria Amélia António; and the puppet collector of this exhibition, Maria Elisa da Rocha Vilaça. Together with this exhibition, a finger puppet workshop will be available for ages 16 or above, on August 23rd and 24th, from 3pm to 5pm, at Casa de Portugal's studio at Avenida do Dr. Francisco Vieira Machado, Edf. Industrial Nam Fung 13/D. A finger puppet performance will also be held at Tap Seac Gallery on August 25th, at 7pm. For more information and registration, please call 8399 6699 during office hours. The exhibition From East to West – The Wonderful World of Puppets runs until October 14th at Tap Seac Gallery, daily from 10am to 7pm. Admission is free.
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