News

The Monetary Authority of Macao announced today that the preliminary estimate of Macao SAR's foreign exchange reserves amounted to MOP129.1 billion (USD16.16 billion) at the end of October 2013. The reserves fell by 0.9% from the revised value of MOP130.3 billion (USD16.31 billion) for the previous month. When compared with a year earlier, the reserves dropped by MOP4.8 billion or 3.6%. Macao SAR's foreign exchange reserves at end-October 2013 represented 15 times the currency in circulation or 124.4% of Pataca M2 at end-September 2013. 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, dropped 0.97 points month-to-month and 0.56 points year-on-year to 96.51 in October 2013. For enquiry, please contact:
Research and Statistics Department, Monetary Authority of Macao (Tel: 83952532; Fax: 28353042)
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"The Agreement for Trade and Cooperation between the European Economic Community and Macao" was signed on 15th December 1992 and implemented since 1993. In order to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the implementation of the Agreement, the Government of the Macao Special Administrative Region and the EU Office to Hong Kong and Macao have organized a series of commemorative activities, including a "Conference on the occasion of the 20th Anniversary of EU-Macao Trade and Cooperation Agreement", together with a reception and a soft launch of the EU photo exhibition titled "Homo Urbanus Europeanus" to be held in the afternoon on 15th November at the Macao Science Centre. Delegation of the EU led by Ambassador Viorel Isticioaia Budura, Managing Director for Asia-Pacific, European External Action Service, will arrive at Macao to attend the "18th EU-Macao Joint Committee Meeting" with the delegation of Macao headed by Secretary for Administration and Justice Florinda Chan, and the celebrations for the 20th anniversary on the same day.
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Consumer Council conducted its 'Supermarket price survey' for November on 13th November for the implementation of Section 2b), Article 10, Law 4/95/M of 12th June. Surveyed locations included supermarkets near Horte e Costa, Avenida do Ouvidor Arriaga and Rua da Emenda areas in Santo António 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 around 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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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that visitor arrivals in package tour surged by 26.0% year-on-year to 944,188 in September 2013. Visitors in package tour mostly came from Mainland China (759,272), with 272,532 from Guangdong Province, followed by Taiwan, China (56,789); Hong Kong (35,650); and the Republic of Korea (35,610). In the first three quarters of 2013, visitors in package tour totalled 7,413,696, up by 12.8% year-on-year. Outbound residents using services of travel agencies were 110,360 in September, up by 4.9% year-on-year; those travelling in package tour totalled 38,651 and the main destinations were Mainland China; Taiwan, China; Hong Kong and Thailand. In the first nine months of 2013, outbound residents increased by 14.7% year-on-year to 1,069,358 and 405,327 travelled in package tour. There were 98 hotels and guesthouses operating at the end of September 2013, providing 27,807 guest rooms, up by 6.7% year-on-year, of which the 5-star hotels had 18,378 rooms, accounting for 66.1% of the total. In September 2013, a total of 862,470 guests checked into hotels and guesthouses, up by 10.3% year-on-year, with 503,784 staying in 5-star hotels (+14.2%). The average length of stay of guests held stable as September 2012, at 1.3 nights. The average occupancy rate was 82.7%, up by 1.8 percentage points year-on-year, with 4-star hotels leading at 85.8%. Total number of guests was 7,992,647 in the first nine months of 2013, an increase of 13.9% year-on-year; the average occupancy rate stood at 81.9%, down by 1.2 percentage points. From January to September 2013, visitor-guests took up 70.2% of the total number of overnight visitors, higher than the 64.8% in the same period of 2012.
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Chief Executive Mr Chui Sai On said today the Government would put emphasis on the cultivation of local talents by adhering to the principle of "Building Macao with talented individuals". He disclosed this when he attended the plenary meeting of the Legislative Assembly where he answered questions from 30 legislators on his Policy Address for the Fiscal Year 2014, which he delivered yesterday. The questions today ranged from policies on housing, lands, education, fiscal reserves, support for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), protecting local employees' rights, food safety, taxation and youth affairs. In his blueprint for the next year, Mr Chui unveiled that talent cultivation to be one of the long-term mechanisms for effective administration. This mechanism should combine with the existing education system, and the Government would continuously optimise the development of non-tertiary and tertiary education, he said. All in all, by implementing these mechanisms more local talents would be cultivated to support the needs of Macao's sustainable development and diversification of its economy. The Chief Executive said a talent development committee directly under him would soon be set up, with members drawn from the community, education and human resource sectors. The Government would also roll out initiatives to attract local and oversea students to work in Macao, Mr Chui said. Meanwhile, the principle of ensuring the employment of local people first remains unchanged. He said by supportive policies, the Government would encourage companies to promote upward mobility of local employees; but employees should also better equip themselves. The Chief Executive stressed that the implementation of professional accreditation, which is the focal part of this talent cultivation mechanism, is also the direction of development of the whole society. It will advance the comphensive level of the people of Macao and push to develop a diversified economy. Housing policy attracted the most questions. Mr Chui said that in addition to the completion of 19,000 public housing units, some 6,300 more units are under construction; land has also been reserved in the newly reclaimed area for more public housing. Mr Chui disclosed that the Government has also started the process to recover 28 plots of land granted earlier to developers, but which are still lying vacant, with the view to use the regained plots for public housing in the future. Mr Chui said he also agreed with the idea of provident fund linked home ownership schemes in operation in the region, which he said could be of benefit to the community, but the Government would need time to study if it would be practical for Macao. He said public opinion would also be sought on this. Another most frequently asked question was for the support for SMEs. Mr Chui said SMEs were indispensable in pushing for a more diversified economy and that the Government was in favour of providing low-rent shops of adequate sizes in publish housing estates for the SMEs. Mr Chui also revealed that a business area had been set up for Macao SMEs in the marine-themed Chimelong Resort, which is under construction in Hengqin, Zhuhai. The Government would also put in resources to support Macao SMEs to operate there, he added.
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Racing drivers and motorcycle riders pose for pictures in front of the new Macau Grand Prix Race Control Tower as part of this year's media event ahead of this weekend's Star River●Windsor Arch 60th Macau Grand Prix. Drivers from the Star River●Windsor Arch Formula 3 Macau Grand Prix and the FIA World Touring Car Championship – Guia Race of Macau – Presented by Star River●Windsor Arch, and riders from the Star River●Windsor Arch Macau Motorcycle Grand Prix – 47th edition gathered in front of the new Race Control Tower which was constructed for the Grand Prix's Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Following the photo call, the international motorsport competitors visited the Venetian Macao-Resort-Hotel to see a collection of stunning classic automobiles and motorcycles celebrating the heritage of the Grand Prix, where they were joined by students from the School of Nations of Macau and the Macau Portuguese School. The drivers and riders happily signed autographs and posed for pictures with some of the Grand Prix's youngest fans at the annual meet-and-greet session, which has become a popular with fixture with both fans and the media.
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Consumer Council conducted its specific price survey on over-the-counter drugs on 12th November for the implementation of Section 2b), Article 10, Law 4/95/M of 12th June. Result of the mentioned survey has been uploaded to the Council's website (www.consumer.gov.mo) and is 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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The Monetary Authority of Macao released today the credit card statistics for the third quarter of 2013. The total number of personal credit cards in circulation was 725,755 at the end of September 2013, equivalent to an increase of 4.7% over a quarter earlier. The numbers of Pataca (MOP) cards, Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) cards and Renminbi (RMB) cards were 515,956, 77,807 and 131,992 respectively. MOP cards, HKD cards and RMB cards witnessed respective growth of 3.6%, 4.9% and 8.9% quarter-to-quarter. Compared with a year ago, MOP cards and HKD cards rose 13.5% and 11.1% respectively, while RMB cards registered an upsurge of 35.7% mainly driven by a marked 36.3% growth of MOP/RMB dual-currency cards.
As at end-September 2013, credit card credit limit granted by banks in Macao reached MOP13.3 billion, up 8.1% from end-June 2013. Credit card receivables amounted to MOP1.7 billion while the rollover amount totalled MOP520.3 million, accounting for 30.9% of credit card receivables. The delinquency ratio, i.e. the ratio of delinquent amount overdue for more than three months to credit card receivables, edged up to 0.65%.
For the third quarter of 2013, the credit card turnover grew 5.3% quarter-to-quarter to MOP3.4 billion. The cash advance turnover was MOP170.7 million, accounting for 5.0% of total credit card turnover. Credit card repayments, in which payments for interest and fees are included, went up 10.4% from the previous quarter to MOP3.5 billion.
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The Government will speed up the establishment of long-term mechanisms for an effective administration, promote the development of a diversified economy and enhance public administration performance in the coming year. This was disclosed today by the Chief Executive Mr Chui Sai On in his annual policy address, for the Fiscal Year 2014, entitled "Enhance underlying strength‧Promote sustainable development". Speaking at the Legislative Assembly to announce his policy blueprint, the Chief Executive also announced a string of measures to increase the distribution of the fruits of the economic development to the people of Macao in the Fiscal Year starting January 1, 2014. These include an additional injection of 7,000 patacas into each account in the Central Provident Fund for each eligible citizen; permanent residents will also get 9,000 patacas and non-permanent residents 5,400 patacas in the Wealth Partaking Scheme. Permanent residents will also get 600 patacas in healthcare vouchers: permanent residents aged 15 and above will get up to 6,000 patacas in the three-year Continuing Education Programme. For the elderly, they will each get 7,000 patacas in their old age allowance per year, plus 3,000 patacas per month. The electricity subsidy for each residential unit will continue at 200 patacas per month. All Macao residents will enjoy the first 3,500 patacas tax waiver in property estate tax. Macao permanent residents buying their first homes will get a stamp duty waiver on the first three million patacas of a property's value. The Government will disburse an extra month's full general subsidy to eligible families receiving financial assistance and to extend to 10 weeks for each implementation of the Short-term Food Assistance Programme; upward adjustment of the income ceiling to 1.8 times the minimum subsistence index; provision of one-off food assistance to families receiving food assistance for the first time. To foster care for the physically challenged, the disability gratuity will go up to 7,000 patacas per year for ordinary level, and to 14,000 patacas for the special level. For students, the Government will continue to provide allowances to those in tertiary and non-tertiary education institutions, and to those from financially-challenged families. For the employed and middle-income group, they will get a 30 percent reduction in their personal income tax with the basic allowance set at 144,000 patacas; a 60 percent rebate of the personal income tax paid by each Macao resident, subject to a ceiling of 12,000 patacas. Those eligible will receive their rebates in 2015. Mr Chui highlighted the importance of the four long-term effective mechanisms to enhance well-being of society, namely education, social security, medical and health and housing. On education, Mr Chui said talent cultivation is important to the sustainable development of Macao, and the Government would consider launching the "Elite Cultivation Programme", "Expert Incentive Programme" and "Applied Talents Promotion Programme" in the year. Moreover, a vocational education centre and a language training centre in Seac Pai Van on Coloane are to be constructed and expected to commence operations in 2016. On social security, the Government will conduct a public consultation on the voluntary central provident fund scheme; formulate framework policy for the retirement protection system, develop a ten-year action plan for the development of services for the elderly in 2016-2025, and accelerate the expansion of existing homes for the elderly and the construction of new ones. On medical and health, the bill on Legal System for Resolving Disputes in Medical Incidents has already been submitted to the legislative Assembly for deliberation; plan to set up a dedicated healthcare services zone for the elderly at all health centres in Macao; provide 24-hour outpatient and an elderly services zone at the newly completed Emergency Care Building of the Conde S. Januario Hospital; strengthen law enforcement on smoking control in casinos and other entertainment establishments. On housing, Mr Chui said the Government would start the construction of the "post-19,000 units" public housing in the year, continue to increase land reserves for public housing development, and reserve land for residential use in the new reclamation areas; commence public consultation in the coming year to explore the supply of new buildings under the principle of "Macao property for Macao residents". The Chief Executive also mentioned several methods to develop a more diversified economy. On support development of industries, the Government will launch the new international convention and professional exhibition support scheme and the new website development subsidy scheme for SMEs, and continue to implement the scheme to support operations of long-established and unique small or medium-sized restaurants. He said that a cultural industry fund is already established to provide support to local cultural and creative talented individuals. On enhancing regional co-operation, the first phase of the new Guangdong-Macao border-crossing project will commence and new customs clearance arrangements are being explored. The Government will also provide training for the people in the Portuguese-speaking countries to affirm Macao's role as a trading service platform for China and Portuguese-speaking countries. The Chief Executive pledged to build a more livable city by improving environmental protection, transport, telecommunication, and public security. He also said that in next year the Government would enhance public administration performance by raising operational efficiency and effectiveness; deepen and improve performance assessment for department heads, and consider establishing a special committee to co-ordinate and supervise the related work.
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Consumer Council conducted its third 'Supermarket price survey' for November on 10th November for the implementation of Section 2b), Article 10, Law 4/95/M of 12th 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 around 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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