News

The Secretary for Security, Mr Wong Sio Chak, urged police officers to work harmoniously and be more transparent in performing their duties in serving the community. The work of the police is closely related to the people's livelihood and rapid developments in the society have made bigger demands on their services. But they have won recognition from the community with the way they have tackled challenges, he said. Mr Wong made these comments as he embarked on his first visits to various units in his newly-appointed capacity of Secretary for Security, to better understand the work of frontline officers and to listen to their views. Accompanying Mr Wong on his visits were Chief of Office the Secretary for Security, Ms Cheong Ioc Ieng; Director-General of the Macao Customs, Ms Lai Man Wa; Assistant Director-General, Mr Sin Wun Kao and Mr Ng Kuok Heng; Commissioner General of the Unitary Police Service, Mr Ma Io Kun; and Commissioner of the Public Security Police Force, Mr Leong Man Cheong. Mr Wong visited the Macao Customs headquarters and their posts at the Border Gate checkpoint on 5 January. The following day he visited the Police Tactical Intervention Unit. In meetings with Mr Wong, the officers said that in the face of increased demands for their services brought on by the completion of several large-scale infrastructure projects, such as the extended boundary-crossing hours of operation and the research project on Macao's jurisdictions on its customary waters, they needed additional manpower and equipment. Mr Wong praised the officers for their widely-recognised hard work that helped contribute to the prosperity and social stability of Macao and urged them to continue to face challenges and use of their best abilities to serve the community.
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Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) is currently inviting public tenders for the "Macau Tourism Industry Development Master Plan Service Provision" to support the Macau SAR Government's goal of building a World Centre of Tourism and Leisure. Tourism industry is playing a leading role in Macau's economic development. With the destination's strategic positioning as a World Centre of Tourism and Leisure, MGTO sees the need to devise a comprehensive plan for Macau's tourism development. With the "Macau Tourism Industry Development Master Plan" initiated in 2015, MGTO will propose an overall plan for the short-, medium- and long-term development of Macau tourism industry. In consequence, the Office will formulate a comprehensive and integrated work scheme for the tourism industry and department. The practical tasks include an analysis on Macau tourism development; formulation of development goals and strategies for Macau tourism industry; studies on tourism products, destination promotion and coordinated systems for tourism development; suggestions for plan implementation, etc. MGTO is currently inviting public tenders for the "Macau Tourism Industry Development Master Plan Service Provision". The deadline for tender submission is 2 March 2015. Interested bidders can visit Macau Tourism Industry Net: http://industry.macautourism.gov.mo for details of the tender invitation notice. They may also submit their enquiries on the tourism industry net starting today until 10 days before the deadline for tender submission. Relevant replies will be posted on the same website.
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Under the provisions of Administrative Regulation nº 21/2007 dated November 05 and Administrative Regulation nº 27/2013 dated November 18, the Monetary Authority of Macao (AMCM) will be launching the Year of the Goat commemorative coins. To ensure the orderly conduct of the sales process, AMCM will implement a quota system. From 9:00 am onwards on January 10 (Saturday) at Centro Comercial da Praça do Tap Seac (The Tap Seac Glass Building), AMCM will commence the distribution of queuing passes for the purchase of the Goat commemorative coins to queuing citizens who are holders of either permanent or non-permanent Macao resident identity card and who are aged 18 or above. Each of the queuing citizens will be distributed only one queuing pass while stock lasts. AMCM will conduct sales and subscription for the pass holders between January 12 and February 6, 2015. Pass holders should bring along their Macao resident identity card and come to AMCM to make payment for the purchase/subscription of the coins in accordance with the date indicated on the pass. The maximum quantity of coins that can be purchased and is guaranteed to be fully satisfied for the purchase of each pass holder is 2 pieces of gold proof coins, 1 piece of 5 oz silver proof coins and 2 pieces of 1 oz silver proof coins respectively. The pick-up arrangement of coins will be organized according to the coin stock availability. For further inquiries, please refer to AMCM's webpage (www.amcm.gov.mo) or telephone 28565071.
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The Government would evaluate efforts in advancing the development of traditional Chinese medicine to better diversify Macao's economy and make best use of the country's policies. The Chief Executive Mr Chui Sai On said this today as led a delegation to Zhuhai and Zhongshan in Guangdong province with senior officials that included Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Leong Vai Tac; Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Mr Raimundo Arrais do Rosário. In a meeting with leading officials of the Zhuhai Government, Mr Chui said he believed this year would be an important one to further intensify their co-operation goals such as strengthening industry diversification, expediting cross-boundary infrastructures and taking best advantages of the new boundary-crossing policy. Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Leong Vai Tac, said the establishment of reputable traditional Chinese medicine centres in Macao, including the State Key Laboratory for Quality Research in Chinese Medicine and the centre set up by the World Health Organization, would make its products fulfil international standards and easier to export worldwide. Mr Leong said he believed in the current co-operation model Macao and Zhuhai could roll out more co-operation projects in many other areas. Secretary of Zhuhai CPC Committee, Mr Li Jia, said in the meeting that the next five years were important ones not only for Macao but also for Zhuhai, with the Hengqin Free Trade Zone and the completion of the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge. He said both governments should plan better ahead their industry diversification and set up effective mechanisms for the opportunities emerging in the inter-metropolitan area of Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macao. Mr Li said the Zhuhai government would expedite its infrastructure construction, including the New Guangdong-Macao Channel and its metro system that connects Macao. From Zhuhai the delegation proceeded to Zhongshan and met with leading officials there including the Secretary of Zhongshan CPC Committee, Mr Xue Xiaofeng, and the Mayor, Mr Chen Liangxian. Mr Chui said that he had received positive feedback from the Central Government regarding the proposal to enlist the Cuiheng New District in the Framework Agreement on Co-operation between Guangdong and Macao and that it could become one of the highlights in the Framework and further to become part of the country's development strategy. He said he was confident in the scheme on facilitated travel for pleasure crafts, saying the vessels could sail between Zhongshan and Macao. The Secretary of Zhongshan CPC Committee, Mr Xue Xiaofeng, said he expected facilitated travel for pleasure crafts could be introduced in first half of the year, as the construction in checkpoints were going full speed ahead. Upon completion, it would be the first port open for pleasure crafts in the mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan. He said the Guangdong-Macao co-operation display zone would also help Macao to foster economy diversification and to upgrade Zhongshan's overall positioning. Also presented in the meeting included Chief-of-Office of the Chief Executive's Office, Ms O Lam; Chief of Office of the Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Ms Cheong Chui Ling; Director of the Government Information Bureau, Mr Chan Chi Ping; Director of the Protocol, Public Relations and External Affairs Office, Mr Fung Sio Weng; and Advisor of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Kou Chin Hung.
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Consumer Council conducted its first 'Supermarket price survey' in January on 5 January for the implementation of Section 2b), Article 10, Law 4/95/M of 12 June. Surveyed locations included supermarkets near Areia Preta and Avenida de Venceslau de Morais 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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The Government would step up its efforts in building a more comprehensive healthcare system that would meet the people's increasing needs, a system that would match international standards. This was disclosed by the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Mr Tam Chon Weng, after a visit to the Conde S. Januário public hospital where he also attended an internal meeting and exchanged views with staff on 5 January. Mr Tam, whose portfolio includes the healthcare system, said the Government would take effective measures to shorten patients' waiting time, upgrade the hospital's facilities and provide more training to specialists. In a few months the Health Bureau would launch a mobile application to give the people better grasps of the waiting list for services in both public and private hospitals, to shorten their time spent waiting for medical services. Mr Tam said the Government acknowledged the problems staff faced, including the shortage of manpower and lack of training and promotion opportunities. He pledged to enhance the mechanisms to offer more professional on-the-job training and promotion, and would recruit more professionals to cope with the growing demands on the service. A system will also be introduced to monitor usage of resources in the hospital. Mr Tam's visit also included the emergency ward, pharmacy, specialist departments and resource centre for cancer patients. He also attended a presentation on the hospital's operation, triage system and facilities. Later in the day, Mr Tam attended a plenary meeting of the Council for Medical Affairs to collect views and suggestions to help better prepare for the Chief Executive's Policy Address in March.
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According to statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, money supply retreated in November. As total loans increased whereas total deposits dropped, the overall loan-to-deposit ratio of the banking sector rose from a month earlier.
Money supply
Currency in circulation grew 3.3% whereas demand deposits dropped 7.7%. M1 thus decreased 5.9% from one month earlier. Concurrently, quasi-monetary liabilities dropped 0.4%. The sum of these two items, i.e. M2, decreased 1.1% to MOP484.3 billion. On an annual basis, M1 and M2 rose 3.9% and 8.7% respectively. The share of Pataca (MOP) in M2 stood at 25.8%, up 0.4 percentage points from a month ago or 2.0 percentage points from a year earlier. The share of Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) in M2 was 49.7%, up 0.3 percentage points month-to-month but down 3.1 percentage points year-on-year.
Deposits
Resident deposits decreased 1.2% from the preceding month to MOP473.6 billion. Of which, MOP deposits increased 0.1% while HKD deposits and other foreign currency deposits decreased at respective rates of 0.5% and 3.6%. Non-resident deposits dropped 2.5% to MOP228.1 billion. Public sector deposits with the banking sector increased 2.0% to MOP90.9 billion. As a result, total deposits with the banking sector dropped 1.2% from a month earlier to MOP792.5 billion. The shares of MOP and HKD in total deposits were 18.8% and 42.0% respectively.
Loans
Domestic loans to the private sector increased 0.1% from a month ago to MOP331.6 billion. Among which, MOP93.0 billion was MOP-denominated and MOP212.3 billion was denominated in HKD, representing 28.0% and 64.0% of the total respectively. On the other hand, external loans remained virtually unchanged at MOP348.4 billion; of which, loans denominated in MOP and HKD accounted for 1.2% (MOP4.3 billion) and 23.0% (MOP80.2 billion) respectively.
Loan-to-deposit ratios
The loan-to-deposit ratio for the resident sector at end-November rose 0.4 percentage points from the previous month to 58.7%. The ratio for both the resident and non-resident sectors also grew by 1.1 percentage points to 85.8%.
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The selection of the 2014 Subsidy Programme for Fashion Design on Sample Making held by the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC) was completed and a total of eight entrants were selected as beneficiaries of the Programme. IC will grant each beneficiary (individual or team) with a subsidy of up to MOP150,000 for the sample making, production of promotional material and application for participating in fashion design marketing activities in or outside Macao.
In order to promote sustainable development of the fashion design industry in Macao, IC launched the 2014 Subsidy Programme for Fashion Design on Sample Making last year. Among the 23 applicants, the adjudicating panel selected eight finalists after the initial and second reviews, seven of which are individuals and one is a team. The beneficiaries are: Wai Chin Seong, Leong Man Teng, Lei Wai Cheng, Wan Sio Tong and Wong Ha (team), Cheang Man Cheng, Cheong Oi Leng, Cheang Chi Tat and Leong Iok Pui.
The adjudicating panel comprised of relevant professionals from Macao and Hong Kong covering various fields such as fashion design, retail, production, training and the public sector. Members include Walter Ma, Vice Chairman of the Hong Kong Fashion Designers Association; Terry Sio, member of the Committee of Cultural Industries of Macao and the President of Rainbow Group; Victoria Kuan, Senior Manager at the Macau Productivity and Technology Transfer Centre (CPTTM); José Tang Kuan Meng, Vice President of the Industrial Association of Macau; Robert Lai, consultant of the Macao Fashion Gallery and Chan Peng Fai, Acting Vice President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of Macao.
The Subsidy Programme for Fashion Design on Sample Making was first launched in 2013. Adjudicators who participated in the selection process of the two previous Programmes said that, the marketing and budgeting plans of applicants in 2014 have generally improved compared with that of the previous year, and many designs have boosted market potential. More than half of the applicants have registered trademarks for their brands, showing that local fashion designers are aware of brand protection and paying much attention to intellectual property rights. Moreover, over 70% of the applicants have established their brands in less than three years, showing that new designers do have a larger demand for the subsidy, which indeed supports and spurs more newcomers to the industry. For enquiries about the results of the Programme, please call Ms. Lam or Ms. Lau through tel. (853) 2892 4040 during office hours.
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Macao Post will issue a new greeting card for Lunar Year of the Goat titled "The Auspicious Goat brings Prosperity in the New Year". This card will be available for sale at the Macao Post Headquarters, all post offices and postal kiosks on 8th January, 2015. This greeting card priced at MOP11.00 each can be sent to every corner of the world without stamp. It's saving your time and money.
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Macao Post will release the "Supplements for Philatelic Album of Macao 2014" on 8th January 2015, it will be available for sale at the Philatelic Shop of Macao Post Headquarters and the Communications Museum. The album pages are pre-printed with all the stamps' images of 2014. Your collections of stamps and souvenir sheets of 2014 can be put into the pre-printed pages for convenient storage. The selling price of Supplements for Philatelic Album of Macao 2014 is MOP250.00.
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