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For the implementation of Section 2b), Article 10, Law 4/95/M of 12 June, Consumer Council conducted its specific price surveys on household cleansing products, and shampoo & shower gels on 14 January. Results of the mentioned 2 surveys have been uploaded to the Council's website (www.consumer.gov.mo) and are available in the Council's 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' iPhone and Android apps. For inquiry, please call the Council's hotline: 8988 9315.
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Macao could become a base for Portuguese language training to cultivate more bilingual personnel so to fulfill its position as a commercial and trade co-operation service platform between China and the Portuguese-speaking countries, the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Mr Tam Chon Weng, has said. Speaking in a meeting on 14 January with the Secretary of State for Overseas Portuguese Communities, Mr José Cesário, who was in Macao for an official visit, Mr Tam said both governments were confident, based on the friendly relations, to achieve greater bilateral benefits by furthering co-operation in creative industry, promotion of the Portuguese language, public health, tourism and sports. Mr Tam said a personnel exchange programme was needed as he saw great potential in co-operation.
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The Monetary Authority of Macao announced today that the preliminary estimate of Macao SAR's foreign exchange reserves amounted to MOP131.4 billion (USD16.44 billion) at the end of December 2014. The reserves increased by 2.7% from the revised value of MOP127.9 billion (USD16.02 billion) for the previous month. Macao SAR's foreign exchange reserves at end-December 2014 represented 12 times the currency in circulation or 105.2% of Pataca M2 at end-November 2014. The trade-weighted effective exchange rate index for the pataca, a gauge of the domestic currency's exchange rates against the currencies of Macao's major trading partners, rose 0.99 points month-to-month and 4.91 points year-on-year to 101.62 in December 2014.
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From 2015, the Heritage Exhibition of a Traditional Pawnshop Business, an affiliated gallery of the Macao Museum under the Cultural Affairs Bureau, offers free admission to Macao Identity Card holders aged 65 or above, and to schools and non-profit organizations who make prior reservations, while the admission fee for other citizens and tourists remains at MOP5. By implementing this new measure, the Cultural Affairs Bureau aims at promoting the Heritage Exhibition of a Traditional Pawnshop Business and the historical development of the pawnshop business in Macao close by more citizens.
Tak Seng On Pawnshop was established in 1917. Composed by the pawnshop counter and storehouse, this pawnshop is one of the most complete existing pawnshop establishments in Macao. Initially, it was owned by Mr. Kou Ho Neng, a wealthy Macao merchant. The Tak Seng On Pawnshop was restored by the Cultural Affairs Bureau and opened to the public on 21 March, 2003. It offers visitors a glimpse of the operation modes and processes of the pawnshop industry in the past through the display of pawn tools, tickets and records. Video guided tour services are available since January 2015 to introduce the rise and prosperous development of the pawnshop history in Macao to visitors. In addition, Macao Identity Card holders aged 65 or above and schools and non-profit organizations with prior reservations enjoy free admission also starting from January.
The Heritage Exhibition of a Traditional Pawnshop Business is open to the public from 10:30am to 7pm every day except on the first Monday of every month. It can receive a maximum of 20 people at a time. For more information, please contact the Cultural Affairs Bureau through tel. (853) 2835 7911 during office hours or visit the websites www.macaumuseum.gov.mo or www.icm.gov.mo .
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The work of the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau is closely related to the people's livelihood, thus its officials must double their efforts to make people-oriented policies and offer highly efficiency public services. Secretary for Administration and Justice, Ms Chan Hoi Fan, made these comments as she met with senior officials of the Bureau on 13 January, when she also toured several departments to get a better grasps of their work on environment issues, food safety, quarantine, civil and licensing services. She urged the Bureau to fully adhere to Chief Executive's administration principles of "putting people first" and "scientific decision-making" to meet the increasing expectations of the people. In the meeting Ms Chan thanked the officials for having given suggestions to optimise electronic services and streamline administrative procedures. Retaining good internal communication and working with concerted efforts would lead to more successful governance, she said. Officials who also attended the meeting included Chairman of the Administration Committee of the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau, Mr Vong Iao Lek; Vice Chairman, Mr Lo Veng Tak; members of the Committee: Ms Isabel Celeste Jorge, Mr Ma Kam Keong, Mr Leong Kun Fong, Mr Mak Kim Meng and Ms Ung Sau Hong, together with Chief of Office of the Secretary for Administration and Justice, Ms Iao Man Leng.
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Earlier, UM hired four world-renowned scholars through global recruitment, namely the computer scientist, Chair Professor Lionel M.Ni, vice rector for academic affairs; the physicist, Prof Da-Hsuan Feng, director of the Global Affairs Office and special assistant to the rector; Chair Professor Chuxia Deng, a leading scientist in the field of life sciences who serves as the dean of the Faculty of Health Sciences; and the linguist, Chair Professor Hong Gang Jin, dean of the Faculty of Arts and Humanities. Now, three more eminent scholars have also joined UM. They are the established pharmacologist, Chair Professor Richard Dequan Ye; the historian, Distinguished Professor Haijian Mao; and the linguist, Distinguished Professor De Bao Xu.
Chair Professor Richard Dequan Ye, deputy director of UM's Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, is an established pharmacologist specialised in receptors and innate immunity. He has 27 years of research experience in the United States and was recruited from overseas in 2010 through China's 1000 Experts Programme. Prior to joining UM, Prof Ye served as chair professor and dean of the School of Pharmacy at Shanghai Jiao Tong University. Before returning to China, Prof Ye successively served as an assistant professor and associate professor at the Scripps Research Institute in the United States, and later received a tenured appointment at the University of Illinois College of Medicine and worked as a professor of pharmacology. Prof Ye has authored or co-authored more than 160 research articles, which have been cited for more than 9000 times. He has collaborated with pharmaceutical industry leaders such as Johnson & Johnson and Novartis in new drug discovery. Prof Ye has served as an associated editor of the American Journal of Physiology – Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology, member of the editorial board of Molecular Pharmacology, and section editor of The Journal of Immunology. He has been an associate editor of Pharmacological Reviews since 2014.
Distinguished Professor Haijian Mao is a historian who enjoys renown in the international academic circle. His research on the modern and contemporary histories of China, especially on the two Opium Wars and the Reform Movement of 1898 in Qing dynasty, has earned him recognition from the academic circle. He is a Distinguished "Changjiang" Professor of the Ministry of Education. He was formerly a professor of history at East China Normal University and dean of its Si-Mian Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities; research fellow of the Institute of Modern History, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences; and professor of the Department of History at Peking University. He has given lectures at universities in Japan, Hong Kong, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, and South Korea. He is a prolific writer, and his main works include The Collapse of the Heavenly Dynasty: A Restudy of the Opium War, and From 1895 to 1898: The Textual Research and Annotations on Kang Youwei's Autobiography, Woshi [My history]
Distinguished Professor De Bao Xu is a renowned linguist, with fruitful results and major academic impact in the theories of phonology, particularly Chinese phonology, and in teaching Chinese as a foreign language. Prof Xu has more than 30 years of experience in teaching, research and administration in the US. He was formerly Leonard C Ferguson Chair Professor of East Asian Languages and Literatures and chairperson of East Asian Languages and Literatures Department, at Hamilton College, United States; and chair professor of the College of Humanities at Beijing Normal University's Zhuhai campus. Prof Xu is a prolific writer. He has authored or co-authored ten books and over 80 articles and papers on theoretical linguistics, Chinese linguistics, and CALL study in teaching Chinese as a second language. He is a co-editor-in-chief of Contemporary Linguistic Theory Series, published by the China Social Sciences Press.
"Teaching and research are two inseparable core missions for any university," says UM Rector Wei Zhao. "In the past several years, UM has been relentless in recruiting outstanding scholars globally. We are indeed very proud and pleased that our newcomers are all world-renowned scholars with outstanding teaching and research achievements and widespread academic impact. I believe that these scholars will enable UM to achieve greater success in teaching and research, as well as provide fresh momentum to UM's pursuit of the goal to become a high-quality world-class university with regional characteristics."
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To be responsible to the people, to work in closer partnership with the community and enhance public relations: this is mission statement of the newly-appointed Secretary for Security, Mr Wong Sio Chak. And he would follow this in managing the disciplinary services, he told reporters after a visit to the Fire Services Bureau on 13 January. His team would put greater efforts into promptly answering to the people' needs, join hands with the community for better crime prevention, and to optimise methods in promoting safety messages. Mr Wong said visiting the various disciplinary services gave him opportunities to better understand the difficulties frontline officers faced, and the demands for better services. He also got to know more of the new trends of crime, would help him to introduce more effective and practical measures in safeguarding the public. He told senior Fire Services Bureau officers that their services were closely related to the people's livelihood and they had to bear more responsibilities as the needs for services increased. Their achievements were noted but more foresight is needed to enhance team management in the future. When asked recent police actions, Mr Wong said the police would always act in accordance with law and gather sufficient information to launch their actions. Continuous efforts in crime fighting is the reason for Macao being a secure and stable society, he added.
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According to statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, new approvals of residential mortgage loans (RMLs) and those of commercial real estate loans (CRELs) decreased simultaneously in November 2014. With regard to outstanding balance, RMLs and CRELs both witnessed increases. New lending approved In November 2014, new RMLs approved by Macao banks decreased 26.9% month-to-month to MOP3.4 billion; of which, 97.6% was extended to residents. In terms of value, new RMLs to residents and those to non-resident decreased 26.6% and 38.2% respectively. When compared with the same period of 2013, new approvals of RMLs witnessed increase of 14.2%. New RMLs collateralised by uncompleted units (i.e. equitable mortgage) decreased by 50.7% month-to-month to MOP0.4 billion. The equitable mortgage extended to residents, which accounted for 95.5% of the total, decreased 49.7%. Nevertheless, attributable to the lower base for comparison after the implementation of the Legal Regime for Title Transfer of Buildings Under Construction in June 2013, new RMLs collateralised by uncompleted units expanded 223.9% year-on-year. New CRELs decreased by 5.7% month-to-month to MOP3.6 billion; of which, 95.2% was granted to residents. In terms of value, new CRELs to residents and non-residents decreased 4.8% and 20.4% respectively. On an annual basis, new approvals of CRELs increased by 12.9%. Outstanding balances As at end-November 2014, the outstanding value of RMLs reached MOP150.9 billion, an increase of 1.1% from one month earlier or 29.3% from a year ago. The resident component made up 94.1% of the total. Compared to end-October 2014, outstanding RMLs to residents and non-residents rose 1.1% and 0.8% respectively. Concurrently, the outstanding value of CRELs increased 0.7% from end-October 2014 and was up 39.8% from end-November 2013 to MOP118.0 billion. Residents accounted for 90.8% of the loans. Compared with one month earlier, outstanding CRELs to residents and non-residents grew 0.6% and 1.9% respectively. Delinquency ratios At the end of November 2014, the delinquency ratio for RMLs was 0.07%, up 0.01 percentage point from a month ago and from a year ago. The ratio for CRELs was 0.06%, down 0.01 percentage point from a month ago or up 0.03 percentage points from end-November 2013.
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Consumer Council conducted its third 'Supermarket price survey' in January on 12 January for the implementation of Section 2b), Article 10, Law 4/95/M of 12 June. Surveyed locations included 8 supermarkets in Toi San, Ilha Verde and Fai Chi Kei areas in N. Sra. de Fátima Parish. The latest 'Supermarket Price Survey' is now available on Consumer Council's website (www.consumer.gov.mo), and the 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' iPhone and Android apps. The survey is also available free of charge at the offices of Consumer Council, IACM's Iao Hon and S. Domingos Markets, bookstores and libraries. Consumers may also access the resources through WAP channels on their mobile phones. With reference to the local six parishes and the number of supermarkets in each parish, the Council has divided over 100 supermarkets into 8 areas for price collection. The Council collects prices from these supermarkets for the provision of a more comprehensive database for consumers to check price discrepancies and make price comparisons according to their desired locations. For inquiry, please call 8988 9315.
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Consumer Council conducted supermarket price surveys in 2014 and nearly 400,000 price data were surveyed. Starting January 2015, over 100 supermarkets are included in the survey, and the Council will enhance the functions of the 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' mobile phone app to ensure consumers have easy access to supermarket price data. The Council extended the survey coverage in 2013 from conducting its monthly survey at over 10 supermarkets to 97 supermarkets. The survey included 13 categories of products, namely rice, cooking oil, noodles, milk powder, household cleansing products, etc., which amounted to around 340 commodities. The Council surveyed nearly 400,000 price data last year, of which over 380,000 price data were surveyed from the monthly supermarket price surveys and over 8,000 data were surveyed from the specific price surveys. In order to let the consumers have easy access to the tens of thousands supermarket price data surveyed monthly, the Council has enhanced its website and the functions of the 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' mobile phone app. The 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' focuses on the price differences of the surveyed commodities and consumers can make use of the functions such as 'Supermarket Price Watch', 'Rankings for Supermarkets with Lowest Prices', 'Rankings of Products with Price Differences of over 50%', 'Shopping Basket' and 'Specific Product Price Platform' to make comparisons according to their shopping preferences.
The Council states that more and more consumers have made use of the Council's website and the 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' mobile phone app to make comparisons. Since its launch, the iPhone app has been downloaded for nearly 50,000 times, and has a browsing record of over 2.55 million hits. For the Android version, it has been downloaded for nearly 40,000 times, and has a browsing record of over 3 million hits. In 2014, the download record for both the iPhone and Android 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' mobile phone apps had a total of around 20,000 times. This reflects the popularity of the apps among the consumers and the price data uploaded on the apps have been widely used.
As it is quite common for consumers to make their purchase at supermarkets, there is a trend for the continuous increase in the number of supermarkets. The Council foresees that the number of supermarkets included in the 'Supermarket Price Survey' will increase accordingly. Since January 2015, the number of supermarkets being surveyed has increased to 101, and the Council will continue to conduct surveys by parishes, at 8 times a month. The surveyed price data will be compared and uploaded on the 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' mobile phone apps for consumers' reference.
For enquiry, please call 89889315.
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