News

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To further enhance the leisure and beautify the lakeside environment, the Cultural Affairs Bureau has introduced new decorations and renewed graffiti creation at Anim’Arte NAM VAN. Visitors and residents are welcome to experience the joyful atmosphere.
The new decorations at the retail area of the Anim’Arte NAM VAN include awning lighting, plants, and window decorations, as well as installations under the “Cats” theme. Twelve cats in a fun-loving posture are installed, enhancing the atmosphere in the recreational area of Anim’Arte NAM VAN. The colours are based on the colourful tones of the South American Carnival, while the combination of patterns draws inspiration from typical Portuguese tiles. Tourists and residents are welcome to enjoy the distinctive dining, pedal boats, and cultural and creative local products while experiencing the lively atmosphere of the Anim’Arte NAM VAN under the colorful decoration.
In addition, in order to continuously bring new graffiti creation to Anim’Arte NAM VAN, the Cultural Affairs Bureau has once again cooperated with the local professional graffiti art group GANTZ 5. In conjunction with the three-dimensional art installations, of two main characters of the Macao Cultural and Creative Map, “Pipi” and “Lulu”, the graffiti brings more creativity and vitality to Anim’Arte NAM VAN. Founded in 2004, the GANTZ 5 has been cooperating with local and foreign organizations in order to promote local graffiti art and culture.
Jointly managed by the Cultural Affairs Bureau, the Sports Bureau, the Macao Government Tourism Office, and the Institute for Tourism Studies under the Secretariat for Social Affairs and Culture, Anim’Arte NAM VAN has been opened to the public since June 2016. It combines distinctive cafés, pedal boats, cultural and creative stores, weekend craft markets, exhibitions, and performances, which provides a great leisure place of tourism and recreation for residents and tourists.

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Macao people would continue to work together in a well-planned way, in order to strengthen the community and make Macao an even more prosperous city, said the Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On.In his New Year Message delivered today, Mr Chui said that in order to further the advance of society, the Government would continue to give priority to policies concerning: economic development; enhancement of social wellbeing; and lawful and effective administration.Mr Chui stressed that support from the Central Government – as well as the concerted efforts of all Macao residents – were indispensable factors in Macao’s ongoing achievements.Macao would enhance its economic competiveness while also assisting national development efforts, stated the Chief Executive.Under a plan approved by the Central Government, Macao would have opportunities to make further contributions to the country’s development of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road (collectively known as the “Belt and Road” initiative).To coordinate that work, the Government had established a committee, led by the Chief Executive’s Office, to study how to boost cooperation with countries and neighbouring areas – in particular, with the mainland’s Guangdong and Fujian provinces – covered by the “Belt and Road” initiative; and to link to national strategies the Macao development goals of being a world centre of tourism and leisure, and a commercial and trade cooperation service platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, (collectively known as the “Centre and Platform” policies).In 2016 the Government had discharged its duties in a courageous way, in order to address challenges faced by Macao, and in order to formulate a long-term development plan for Macao’s stability, said Mr Chui.With the help of the community, Macao had been able to maintain its economic stability, its strong fiscal reserves and its high rate of employment, amid a period of economic adjustment.Reviewing 2016’s achievements, Mr Chui noted the Government had formulated Macao’s first-ever Five-Year Development Plan, a blueprint for the city’s socio-economic development spanning the period 2016 to 2020 inclusive. The Plan also aims better to align Macao with the country’s 13th Five-Year Plan.In October, the Government successfully held the 5th Ministerial Conference of the Forum for Economic and Trade Co-operation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries (Macao), which was attended by Premier Li Keqiang. During his visit to Macao, Premier Li had announced a total of 18 new measures to assist in supporting economic and trade cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking countries; and 19 new measures supporting Macao’s development.The Government would take full advantage of Central Government policies aimed at supporting the development of Macao. This would enable Macao to develop a greater number of external ties and increase cooperation globally and regionally, said Mr Chui in his speech.On behalf of the Government, the Chief Executive extended his sincere greetings to the Macao public and expressed gratitude to residents and public servants, in particular those who had to work round the clock to provide services during the holidays.
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The Cultural Affairs Bureau organises the exhibition “Sailing for Dream — Works by Kwok Woon” at the Navy Yard No. 1, featuring over 40 works by the artist Kwok Woon. The opening ceremony was held on Friday, 30 December, at 6:30pm, and was officiated by the President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, Ung Vai Meng; 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., Zhao Chuandong; the Deputy Director of the Department of Public Diplomacy and Information 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., Li Xiaoquan; the wife of Kwok Woon, Joana Ling; and the veteran Macao artist, Mio Pang Fei.

Artist Kwok Woon (1940-2003) was born in Guangdong, Mainland China, and came to Macao in the 1980s. Passionate about the arts, he devoted endless efforts to his dream of becoming an artist. After settling in Macao, he set up the “Círculo dos Amigos da Cultura de Macau” and dedicated himself to the promotion of the development of visual arts in the city; in 1997, he established and headed the Macao International Visual Arts Centre. He made a significant contribution to the exploration and exhibition of creative means of artistic expression and to the cultural exchange with several regions, and had a far-reaching impact on the stimulus to the development of Macao’s visual arts.

This exhibition features Kwok Woon’s most important works from the 1980s, 1990s and later years, which is a significant period in his artistic career. Kwok Woon dared to innovate, produce works by gathering materials with local characteristics throughout Macao and expanding, through the exploration of creative materials, the possibilities of creation. By means of painting, mixed materials and art installations, among other media of expression, he revealed his artistic vision as well as his perception and reflections on different cultural crossroads.
“Sailing for Dream - Works by Kwok Woon” is the first exhibition to take place at the Navy Yard No.1. Located at Rua de S. Tiago da Barra, the Navy Yard No.1, formerly known as Carlos I dock mechanical room, was the dock mechanical room of government in the past and was used for boat building and repairing. Therefore, it has special historical significance in Macao’s history. Kwok Woon’s works have a close relationship with Macao’s daily life and culture, and it is hoped that this exhibition brings the attention of artists, residents and tourists to an important artist of the city and encourage the population to explore the possibilities for development of local arts.
The exhibition runs from 31 December 2016 to 23 April 2017 at the Navy Yard No.1, located at Rua de S. Tiago da Barra, daily from 10am to 7pm, closing on Mondays. Admission is free. For more information, please call 8988 4000, during office hours.

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Organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), the “Nam Van Lake Craft Market” will be held at the Anim’Arte NAM VAN, located at the Nam Van Lake Square, Avenida Panorâmica do Lago Nam Van, on Saturdays and Sundays from 1 January to 30 June, 2017, from 2pm to 9pm. During the event, a rich variety of handicraft workshops will be held. Online registration is available from Wednesday, 4 January. Fee for each handicraft workshop is MOP50.
The “Nam Van Lake Craft Market” will hold a total of 15 themed workshops in the first round, from 14 January to 19 March, including: “Preserved hydrangea topiary”, “Succulent bonsai”, “Pressed flower music box”, “Dough clay—Mini macaroons”, “Preserved flower night lights”, “Happy seed children story workshop—The adventures of ladybird Banban (Cantonese class)”, “Happy seed children story workshop—The adventures of ladybird Banban (English class)”, “Industrial style handicraft—Cement clock”, “Glass bottle pendants with colourful sand”, “Japanese-style retro embroidered wallets”, “Natural handmade soap”, “Rolled paper—Mini flowerpots”, “Let’s make embroidery—Handmade embroidered reusable bags”, “Preserved flower photo frames” and “Japanese-style vintage embroidered long wallets”.
For more information about the dates and content of the workshops, please visit the Activity Registration System on IC’s website (www.icm.gov.mo/eform/event/) from 4 January. Online registration is available until Wednesday, 11 January, at 5pm. Successful applicants will be selected by drawing lots and will be notified by SMS and email on Friday, 13 January. Successful applicants should pay registration fees on site 15 minutes prior to the workshop; latecomers who arrive 10 minutes after the workshop start will be disqualified and will be replaced by the applicants in the waiting list. On-site registration and payment to all workshops starts 30 minutes before the workshop start, subject to availability. For more information about the admissions of each workshop and the class schedule, please visit the Macao Cultural and Creative Industries Website (www.macaucci.com), or the “Macao Craft Market” page on Facebook (www.facebook.com/MacaoCraftMarket/). For enquiries, please contact Ms. Wong, staff member of IC, through tel. no. (853) 2892 4040 during office hours.

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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that Gross National Income (GNI) at current prices was MOP 333.58 billion in 2015, less than Gross Domestic Product (GDP) at current prices (MOP 362.64 billion) by MOP 29.06 billion, representing a net external factor income outflow of the same amount that was equivalent to 8.0% of GDP in 2015, lower than the value (14.3%) registered in 2014. In 2015, per-capita GNI was MOP 520,004 and per-capita GDP was MOP 565,301.

Total outflow of external factor income reflects income earned by non-resident enterprises and investors from investment in Macao. In 2015, total outflow of external factor income dropped by 33.0% year-on-year to MOP 65.77 billion, mainly due to a 39.9% decrease in direct investment income (MOP 51.33 billion) earned by some non-resident enterprises and investors from investment in Macao. On the other hand, portfolio investment income (MOP 965 million) and other investment income (MOP 11.55 billion) increased by 27.1% and 12.2% respectively.

Total inflow of external factor income reflects income earned by resident enterprises and investors from abroad. In 2015, total inflow of external factor income rose by 5.3% year-on-year to MOP 36.71 billion, attributable to an 8.4% increase in portfolio investment income (MOP 14.39 billion) and a 3.8% rise in other investment income (MOP 20.15 billion) earned by some resident enterprises and investors from abroad. Meanwhile, direct investment income (MOP 938 million) also increased by 14.2% year-on-year.

After discounting the effect of price changes, GNI and GDP fell by 13.5% and 21.5% year-on-year respectively in real terms; meanwhile, per-capita GNI and per-capita GDP went down by 16.2% and 23.9% respectively. The rate of decrease in GNI in real terms was smaller than that in GDP in 2015, mainly due to a significant drop in net external factor income outflow.

GNI refers to the total income earned by residents of an economy from engaging in various economic activities within or outside the economy, corresponding to GDP plus income earned by resident investors from abroad, minus income earned by non-resident investors from investment in Macao.

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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that total merchandise export for November 2016 amounted to MOP798 million, down by 8.1% year-on-year; value of re-exports (MOP617 million) slid by 13.9%, but that of domestic exports (MOP181 million) rose by 19.4%. Total merchandise import increased by 2.9% year-on-year to MOP6.82 billion, of which imports of Watches and Beauty, cosmetic & skin-care products expanded by 69.1% and 31.5% respectively. Merchandise trade deficit amounted to MOP6.03 billion.

From January to November 2016, total value of merchandise export dropped by 5.1% year-on-year to MOP9.29 billion, of which value of re-exports (MOP7.49 billion) decreased by 8.1%, but that of domestic exports (MOP1.81 billion) increased by 10.0%. Total value of merchandise import fell by 16.6% to MOP64.78 billion. Merchandise trade deficit widened to MOP55.48 billion for the first eleven months of 2016.

Analysed by destination, merchandise export to Mainland China decreased by 3.8% year-on-year to MOP1.61 billion in the first eleven months of 2016, of which exports to the nine provinces of the Pan Pearl River Delta (MOP1.52 billion) fell by 6.0%, and exports to Hong Kong (MOP5.15 billion) dropped by 11.7%. Meanwhile, exports to the EU (MOP165 million) and the USA (MOP148 million) reduced by 18.4% and 19.7% respectively, whereas exports to the Portuguese-speaking Countries (MOP6 million) jumped by 629.1%. Exports of Non-textiles declined by 4.4% year-on-year to MOP8.63 billion, of which value of Clocks & watches (MOP919 million) dropped by 20.5%, but that of Tobacco & wine (MOP748 million) grew by 46.0%. Exports of Textiles & garments totalled MOP661 million, down by 13.3%.

By place of origin, merchandise import from Mainland China (MOP23.73 billion) and the EU (MOP15.43 billion) in the first eleven months of 2016 decreased by 18.7% and 10.4% respectively year-on-year. However, imports from the Portuguese-speaking Countries (MOP606 million) increased by 12.6%. Analysed by place of consignment, merchandise import from Mainland China declined by 5.6% to MOP11.05 billion, of which imports from the nine provinces of the Pan Pearl River Delta (MOP10.41 billion) fell by 6.7%. Imports of Consumer goods dropped by 12.9% to MOP40.34 billion, with imports of Watches (MOP4.26 billion) and Motor cars & motorcycles (MOP1.19 billion) decreasing by 26.9% and 54.0% respectively. Moreover, value of imports of Fuels & lubricants (MOP5.64 billion), Mobile phones (MOP4.41 billion) and Construction materials (MOP1.81 billion) declined by 12.2%, 39.4% and 37.8% respectively.

External merchandise trade totalled MOP74.07 billion in the first eleven months of 2016, down by 15.3% compared with MOP87.48 billion a year earlier.

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To be in line with the development of the electronic administration of the Special Administrative Region Government, the Identification Services Bureau continuously introduces different electronic services and measures to simplify administration procedures. Starting from 29 December 2016, all service counters of the Identification Services Bureau accept citizens to pay application fees with UnionPay QuickPass and Macao Pass, which will provide greater convenience for citizens when making payment.
Citizens can use the above-mentioned electronic payment tools to pay application fees at the service counters of the Identification Services Bureau at the China Plaza in Praia Grande and the designated counters of the Identification Services Bureau at the Government Services Center in Areia Preta. Furthermore, in order to achieve the whole self-service process to be done electronically, the Identification Services Bureau will add other electronic payment methods to self-service kiosk, so as to provide more convenient electronic services to citizens.

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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that visitors on package tours increased by 6.0% month-to-month to 728,000 in November 2016, with the year-on-year decline narrowing further to 6.5% as compared to 17.8% in October 2016. Package tour visitors from Mainland China (587,000) and the Republic of Korea (27,000) dropped by 7.5% and 5.5% respectively year-on-year, while those from Taiwan (38,000) increased by 1.0%. In the first eleven months of 2016, visitors on package tours totalled 6,831,000, down by 25.1% year-on-year. Outbound residents using services of travel agencies totalled 101,000 in November 2016, down by 11.1% year-on-year. Residents travelling on package tours decreased by 17.9% year-on-year to 38,000, of which residents travelling to Mainland China (26,000) dropped by 9,100 (-25.7%), while those travelling to the Republic of Korea (3,600) and Taiwan (2,500) increased by 62.3% and 14.4% respectively. In the first eleven months of 2016, outbound residents using services of travel agencies totalled 1,121,000, down by 15.9% year-on-year. There were 107 hotels & guesthouses operating at the end of November 2016, up by 3 year-on-year. Number of guest rooms increased by 14.0% to 36,000, with that of 3-star hotels having a significant increase of 116.7%. The number of guest rooms of 5-star (22,000) and 4-star hotels (7,700) together accounted for 81.2% of the total. Number of guests of hotels & guesthouses in November 2016 increased by 18.0% year-on-year to 1,103,000, of which guests from Mainland China (697,000), the Republic of Korea (31,000), Hong Kong (148,000) and Taiwan (40,000) went up by 19.6%, 61.9%, 7.0% and 12.9% respectively. The average length of stay of guests decreased by 0.1 night year-on-year to 1.4 nights. The average occupancy rate of hotels & guesthouses stood at 86.4% in November 2016, up by 1.9 percentage points year-on-year, with 4-star hotels leading at 92.8%. Meanwhile, the average occupancy rate of other hotel categories also exceeded 80.0%. In the first eleven months of 2016, guests of hotels & guesthouses totalled 10,756,000, up by 14.0% year-on-year. The average occupancy rate of hotels & guesthouses stood at 82.0%, up by 1.4 percentage points, while the average length of stay of guests was 1.4 nights, down by 0.1 night year-on-year. Visitor-guests accounted for 71.6% of the total overnight visitors, up by 3.4 percentage points year-on-year.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that both the unemployment rate (1.9%) and the underemployment rate (0.7%) for September-November 2016 held stable as in August-October 2016. Total labour force was 393,100 and the labour force participation rate stood at 71.9%. Total employment decreased by 4,000 from August-October, at 385,500. Analysed by industry, employment in Construction registered a decrease, while that in Education and Retail Trade saw an increase. Number of the unemployed was 7,600, up slightly by 100 as compared with August-October; fresh labour force entrants searching for their first job accounted for 14.7% of the total unemployed, down by 4.5 percentage points. In comparison with September-November 2015, the labour force participation rate dropped by 1.3 percentage points; the unemployment rate held steady, while the underemployment rate rose by 0.1 percentage point.
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