News

The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, is scheduled to visit Beijing from 4 to 7 March to attend the opening of the First Plenary Session of the Twelfth National People's Congress on 5 March. The Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Tam Pak Yuen, the Chief-of-Cabinet of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Tam Chun Weng, the Secretary-General of the Executive Council, Ms O Lam and the Director of the Government Information Bureau, Mr Chan Chi Ping will take part in the visit. The Secretary for Administration and Justice, Ms Florinda Chan, will be Acting Chief Executive while Mr Chui is away.
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Regarding to the hot air balloon crash that has killed 19 tourists today (February 26) in Luxor, Egypt, GGCT would like to inform the public that there is no any Macau residents involved in the accident. So far GGCT has not received any calls for assistance or information. Macao residents may call the 24-hour Tourism Hotline at (853) 2833 3000 for assistance if necessary.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that visitor arrivals totalled 2,312,321 in January 2013, down by 6.1% year-on-year and same-day visitors (1,195,450) accounted for 51.7% of the total. In January 2013, visitors from Mainland China decreased by 1.4% year-on-year to 1,473,785; those from Guangdong Province, Fujian Province and Shanghai totalled 683,776; 67,180 and 51,033 respectively. Meanwhile, there were 616,066 Mainland visitors travelling to Macao under the Individual Visit Scheme (IVS). Moreover, visitor arrivals from Hong Kong (509,826); Taiwan, China (76,841) and Japan (26,904) decreased by 20.1%, 10.2% and 15.0% year-on-year respectively; while those from the Republic of Korea (52,668) and Thailand (21,810) increased by 14.1% and 81.0%. As regards long-haul visitors, those from the US (14,630), Australia (12,203), Canada (5,992) and the UK (4,317) decreased by 5.1%, 8.8%, 11.7% and 9.0% respectively in January 2013. The average length of stay of visitors stood at 1.0 day in January 2013, up by 0.1 day year-on-year, with overnight visitors and same-day visitors staying 1.9 days and 0.2 day respectively.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that a total of 294 MICE events were held in the fourth quarter of 2012, an increase of 22 events year-on-year, of which 263 events were held in paid venues. Total number of participants and attendees increased by 22% year-on-year to 621,359. There were 19 exhibitions held in the fourth quarter of 2012, an increase of 3 exhibitions year-on-year; number of attendees increased by 22% to 586,489. Meanwhile, the other 275 meetings and conferences had 34,870 participants. In accordance with the information collected from 15 exhibition organizers, in the fourth quarter of 2012, there were 11 repeated exhibitions that were previously held in Macao. The major reasons for selecting Macao as the exhibition destination were "business operation in Macao" (73%) and "expanding local market" (40%). The 15 exhibitions held in the fourth quarter attracted 1,967 exhibitors and 19,720 professional visitors. In the fourth quarter of 2012, revenue of the exhibition organizers decreased by 4% year-on-year to MOP85.16 million, mostly from the Financial Support from Government and Other Organizations (89% of total). Expenditure amounted to MOP130.67 million, up by 19% year-on-year, with expenses on Production, Construction & Decoration Services; and Advertising, Promotion & Public Relations accounting for 26% and 13% of the total respectively. Information from 247 exhibitors interviewed showed that revenue of the exhibitors amounted to MOP28.37 million in the fourth quarter of 2012, with 98% coming from Sales of Products. Expenditure amounted to MOP8.43 million, of which Rental for Exhibition Booth and Construction & Decoration accounted for 43% and 33%, respectively. For the whole year of 2012, a total of 1,022 MICE events were held, down by 23 events year-on-year. Total number of participants and attendees increased by 26% year-on-year to 1,612,961, of which 1,489,933 attendees were attracted by the 61 exhibitions, up by 28%. In 2012, revenue and expenditure of the exhibition organizers amounted to MOP155.09 million and MOP234.00 million respectively; meanwhile, revenue and expenditure of the interviewed exhibitors totalled MOP53.76 million and MOP18.08 million respectively.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that imports of Electricity decreased by 25.3% over the previous quarter to 906 million kWh in the fourth quarter of 2012; meanwhile, local generation of Electricity dropped further by 15.6% to 108 million kWh; consumption of Electricity went down by 21.8% to 985 million kWh. For the whole year of 2012, total consumption of Electricity (4.205 billion kWh) increased by 9.1% year-on-year; consumption of Electricity by the Business sector (76.5% of total) increased by 10.4% to 3.218 billion kWh, with that of the Gaming sector rising by 14.6%; consumption by Households went up by 3.4% to 792 million kWh. In 2012, imports of Electricity (3.855 billion kWh) increased 21.8% year-on-year, while local generation of Electricity (561 million kWh) dropped by 36.7%. In the fourth quarter of 2012, imports (11,606 tonnes) and consumption (11,450 tonnes) of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) increased by 25.1% and 21.8% respectively quarter-to-quarter; the average price of imports rose by 13.5% to MOP9.22 per kilogram. For the whole year of 2012, imports (43,477 tonnes) and consumption (43,615 tonnes) of LPG went up by 2.4% and 1.6% respectively year-on-year; the average price of imports rose by 3.1% to MOP9.29 per kilogram. In the fourth quarter of 2012, the average price of Gas Oil & Diesel for automotive (MOP13.20 per litre) and Unleaded Gasoline (MOP12.20 per litre) increased by 1.9% and 0.4% respectively quarter-to-quarter, and that of Bottled LPG (MOP15.56 per kilogram) went up by 11.8%. For the whole year of 2012, the average price of Unleaded Gasoline (MOP12.16 per litre) and Gas Oil & Diesel for automotive (MOP13.03 per litre) increased by 5.5% and 4.6% respectively year-on-year, and that of Bottled LPG (MOP14.98 per kilogram) went up by 5.4%. At the end of the fourth quarter of 2012, stock of LPG (1,972 tonnes) and Gas Oil & Diesel (22.46 million litres) increased by 28.0% and 14.2% respectively quarter-to-quarter, while stock of Fuel Oil (11.00 million litres) decreased by 39.6%.
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According to statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, new SME lending approved by Macao banks rebounded in the second half of 2012. Concurrently, the utilisation of SME credit in proportion to the credit limit approved by banks continued to contract. New Lending Approved In the second half of 2012, new SME credit limit approved by Macao banks totalled MOP12.2 billion, up by 82.6% from the first half year of 2012 but down 28.1% from the same period of 2011. The collateralised ratio, which indicates the proportion of credit limit with tangible assets pledged, was 64.8%, up 1.6 percentage points when compared with the last survey period or 4.0 percentage points when compared with the same period of 2011. Credit Utilisation As at end-December 2012, the outstanding value of total SME loans increased 3.2% from end-June but down 5.3% from a year earlier to MOP31.9 billion. When compared with end-June 2012, SME loans to "education", "information technology" and "restaurants, hotels and similar activities" increased at respective rates of 29.2%, 17.2% and 11.3%, whereas those to "wholesale and retail trade" and "construction and public works" dropped 14.4% and 14.3% respectively. The utilisation rate, defined as the proportion of outstanding credit balance to the credit limit granted, dropped 1.5 percentage points from six months ago to 57.5%. Delinquent Loans At the end of December 2012, the outstanding balance of delinquent SME loans decreased by 29.7% from six months ago to MOP301.0 million. Compared to a year ago, the balance dropped 41.6%. The delinquency ratio, a ratio of delinquent loans outstanding balance to total SME loans outstanding, dropped 0.44 percentage points from end-June 2012 or 0.59 percentage points from a year earlier to 0.94%. For enquiry, please contact:
Research and Statistics Department, Monetary Authority of Macao
(Tel：83952532; Fax：28353042)
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the Composite CPI (120.21) for January 2013 increased by 5.04% year-on-year, attributable to dearer charges for eating out and higher rentals for housing. In comparison with January 2012, notable increase was observed in the price index of Housing & Fuels (+10.05%); Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+7.19%); and Health (+6.99%) on account of dearer prices of Liquefied Petroleum Gas, higher house rentals, rising charges for domestic services and out-patient services. On the contrary, price index of Education and Recreation & Culture decreased by 3.06% and 2.03% respectively. The CPI-A (119.93) and CPI-B (120.70) increased by 5.69% and 4.93% respectively year-on-year. The Composite CPI for January 2013 increased by 0.17% month-to-month. Higher charges for eating out, dearer prices of fresh fish and fresh meat drove up the price index of Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages by 0.54%, while decrease in vegetable prices offset part of the increase; besides, price index of Recreation & Culture decreased by 1.75% due to lower charges for outbound package tours. The CPI-A and the CPI-B increased by 0.24% and 0.16% respectively month-to-month. For the 12 months ended January 2013, the average Composite CPI increased by 5.96% from the preceding period, of which the price index of Alcoholic Beverages & Tobacco (+28.25%); and Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+8.22%) rose significantly, while that of Communication decreased by 3.75%. The average CPI-A and CPI-B increased by 6.33% and 6.13% respectively. 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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To celebrate the Year of the Snake, Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) hosted a spring luncheon in Hong Kong today (22 Feb) to thank the local travel trade, business partners and media for their support to the tourism industry of Macau. Director of MGTO, Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes led a delegation to join the spring luncheon. Present at the luncheon were over 200 guests, including Commissioner for Tourism of the Hong Kong SAR Government, Philip Yung, Director of Asia Tourism Exchange Centre, Xu Hui Fang, Deputy Executive Director of Hong Kong Tourism Board, Daisy Lui and Chairman of Travel Industry Council of Hong Kong, Michael Wu and many others who all shared the joy of the party. The number of visitor arrivals to Macau in 2012 amounted to 28,082,000, representing a slight increase of 0.3% over 2011. Hong Kong constituted the second largest tourist generating market of Macau. Over 7 million Hong Kong visitors traveled to Macau last year. In the Year of the Snake, MGTO will spare no effort in promoting quality tourism, developing diversified tourism products and elevating service quality, in order to build Macau the World Center of Tourism and Leisure. Innovative promotions on Macau tourism will be used under the theme "Touching Moments Experience Macau". In line with the promotion strategies of MGTO, the Representative in Hong Kong will carry out promotional activities targeting different market segments and special events' promotion on 60th anniversary of Macau Grand Prix and the 25th anniversary of Macau International Fireworks Display Contest this year, to augment their interests to visit Macau. In addition, seminars, product presentations, thematic familiarization tours and joint promotions will also be organized to strengthen the communication and collaboration with trade partners and the media.
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The Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, Mr Wu Bangguo, left Macao today after a three-day visit in Macao. Mr Wu and his delegation left on a special flight at 13:30. They were seen off at Macau International Airport by the Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, Vice Chairman of the CPPCC, Mr Ho Hau Wah, the Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macao SAR, Mr Bai Zhijian, principal officials, and heads of Central Government agencies in Macao. Earlier, Mr Wu visited the Ruins of St Paul's, the Museum of Macao and Mount Fortress, accompanied by the Chief Executive and the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Mr Cheong U.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that value of retail sales for the fourth quarter of 2012 totalled MOP 14.32 billion, up by 14% year-on-year. Retail sales of Watches, Clocks & Jewellery amounted to MOP 4.08 billion (28% of total), which was followed by retail sales of Goods in Department Stores (15%), Leather Goods (11%), Adults' Clothing (10%) and Motor Vehicles (7%). Value of retail sales for the fourth quarter of 2012 increased by 15% quarter-to-quarter, with marked increase being observed in sales of Footwear (+36%), Adults' Clothing (+33%) and Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles (+28%); however, retail sales of Automotive Fuels and Goods in Pharmacies decreased by 5% and 3% respectively. For the whole year of 2012, value of retail sales reached MOP 52.85 billion, up by 22% year-on-year. After removing the effect of price changes, volume of retail sales for the fourth quarter increased by 11% year-on-year, with notable increase in sales of Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles (+30%), Adults' Clothing (+23%), Motor Vehicles (+19%) and Goods in Supermarkets (+17%). Meanwhile, volume of retail sales increased by 12% quarter-to-quarter, of which sales of Footwear (+37%), Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles (+28%) and Adults' Clothing (+27%) saw significant increase; on the contrary, sales of Automotive Fuels and Goods in Pharmacies decreased by 5% and 4% respectively. For the whole year of 2012, volume of retail sales increased by 16% year-on-year. In respect of the comments of the retailers, about 69% stated that sales volume in the fourth quarter increased or held stable over the previous quarter, down by 1 percentage point compared with those holding the same sentiment in the third quarter, while 31% reported decrease in sales volume. In terms of the retail prices, about 63% reported stable prices, 31% stated an increase and 6% stated a decrease. In comparison with the same quarter of 2011, about 74% expressed that the stock level was normal in the fourth quarter of 2012, while 6% indicated that the stock level was low. As regards business outlook for the first quarter of 2013, about 78% anticipate that sales volume will increase or remain stable from a quarter earlier, while 22% expect a decrease. Concurrently, about 71% predict stable retail prices, 24% expect an increase, while 5% predict a decrease in retail prices.
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