News

The Monetary Authority of Macao announced today that the preliminary estimate of Macao SAR’s foreign exchange reserves amounted to MOP141.1 billion (USD17.68 billion) at the end of August 2009. The reserves rose by 0.3% from the revised value of MOP140.8 billion (USD17.63 billion) for the previous month. When compared with the same period last year, the reserves increased by MOP18.8 billion or 15.3%. Macao SAR’s foreign exchange reserves at end-August 2009 represented 30 times the currency in circulation or 243.9% of Pataca M2 at end-July 2009. 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, fell by 0.38 points month-to-month but rose by 2.15 points year-on-year to 90.06 in August 2009.
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As a continuous support to the Industry Partners of its Industry Partner Program (IPP) that are actively pursuing the international MICE business opportunities for Macau, the Macau Business Tourism Centre (MBTC) of the Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) hosted the “Industry Partner Networking Dinner” at the Grand Ballroom of MGM Grand today on the occasion of the “Meeting and Incentive Forum Asia 2009” that is currently taking place in Macau between September 27 and 29. The networking dinner served as a platform for the Industry Partners to meet and exchange business contacts with a unique group of about sixty international MICE buyers and suppliers who are attending the Forum. Held at the Venetian Macao-Resort-Hotel, the “Meeting and Incentive Forum Asia 2009” is the first ever M&I Forum to take place in Asia, with the previous editions in Palm Beach, Florida (USA), Prague (Czech Republic), Geneva (Switzerland) and Tenerife (Spain). This event was designed to allow travel professionals to source and research new venues for future events, build new and lasting business relationships with suppliers and prominent MICE agencies and corporate companies, whilst seeing Macau as a destination in its fullest. The Industry Partner Program (IPP) is a cooperative platform set up by MBTC in which local suppliers can work together with the government to develop the local MICE industry, as well as to promote and compete in the international market under the “Macau” destination banner. Since the launching of the program in October 2008, MBTC has been providing great support to the Industry Partners in building their competitiveness and exposures through a series of educational programs and participation in leading MICE trade shows. Upcoming they will be joining MBTC again to participate in the Incentive Travel & Meeting Executives Show (IT&ME) in Chicago on September29-October1, Incentive Travel & Conventions, Meetings Asia (IT&CMA) in Bangkok on October 6-8, European Incentive & Business Travel & Meetings Exhibition (EIBTM) in Barcelona on 1-3 December, and the 19th International Meetings Exhibition (IME) in Tokyo on 8-9 December.
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The Statistics and Census Service released results of the Survey on Manpower Needs and Wages of the Gaming Sector for the second quarter of 2009. Survey coverage excluded junket promoters and junket associates. At the end of the second quarter of 2009, the Gaming Sector had 43,975 employees, down by 3.6% year-on-year. Analyzed by occupations that are directly related to betting services, 18,084 were dealers, down by 5.7% year-on-year, 12,209 were hard & soft count clerks, cage cashiers, pit bosses, casino floorpersons, betting service operators, etc., up by 5.2% year-on-year. Meanwhile, 5,087 were casino & slot machine attendants, security guards, surveillance room operators, etc., down by 4.9% from a year earlier. In June 2009, average earnings (excluding bonuses and allowances) for full-time employees dropped by 2.0% year-on-year to MOP 15,260. Average earnings for dealers fell by 4.8% over June 2008 to MOP 13,120, and that of hard & soft count clerks, cage cashiers, pit bosses, casino floorpersons, betting service operators, etc. stood at MOP 18,600, down by 1.1%. The average earnings for casino & slot machine attendants, security guards, surveillance room operators, etc. registered a year-on-year increase of 7.5% to MOP 10,060. At the end of June 2009, number of vacancies of the Gaming Sector decreased drastically by 52.7% year-on-year to 361, with 50 for dealers, 39 for hard & soft count clerks, cage cashiers, pit bosses, casino floorpersons, betting service operators, etc. and 72 casino & slot machine attendants, security guards, surveillance room operators, etc. As regards recruitment prerequisites, 63.7% of the vacancies required working experience; 50.7% required senior secondary education or higher. Besides Cantonese, other preferred language skills were Mandarin (64.5%) and English (57.6%).
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the unemployment rate for June-August 2009 was 3.8%, up by 0.1 percentage point over the previous period (May-July), while the underemployment rate held stable at 1.9%. Total labour force was 331,400 in June-August 2009, with the employed population decreased by 1,700 from the previous period to 318,800. Analyzed by industry, employment of Retail Trade and Construction saw decrease, while employment of Restaurants & Similar Activities registered an increase. In June-August 2009, number of the unemployed increased by 400 over the preceding period to 12,600, with 13.8% (1,700) being fresh labour force entrants searching for the first job, up by 2.4 percentage points from May-July 2009. In comparison with June-August 2008, the unemployment rate and the underemployment rate went up by 0.8 and 0.3 percentage point respectively. In addition, the labour force participation rate (72.6%) fell by 0.2 percentage point from the previous period and 0.6 percentage point year-on-year.
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According to statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, on a monthly basis, money supply M2 continued to increase in July. As deposits with banks rose at a faster pace than loans, the loan-to-deposit ratio edged down from a month ago. Money supply
Driven by the increases of currency in circulation and demand deposits, M1 rose 6.6% month-to-month. Meanwhile, quasi-monetary liabilities went up by 1.9%. The sum of these two items, i.e. M2, rose 2.5% to MOP208.5 billion. On an annual basis, M1 and M2 rose 31.5% and 11.8% respectively. The share of Pataca (MOP) in M2 stood at 27.8%, down 0.7 percentage points over a month ago or 0.4 percentage points over a year earlier. Concurrently, the share of Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) in M2 was 54.5%, up 0.8 percentage points month-to-month or 2.1 percentage points year-on-year.
Deposits
Resident deposits rose by 2.6% from the previous month to MOP203.8 billion. Of which, MOP deposits fell marginally by 0.1% while HKD deposits and other foreign currency deposits grew at respective rates of 4.0% and 2.1%. On the other hand, non-resident deposits and public sector deposits with the banking sector rose 1.0% (to MOP72.4 billion) and 4.0% (to MOP13.4 billion) respectively. As a result, total deposits with the banking sector edged up 2.2% from the previous month to MOP289.5 billion. The shares of MOP and HKD in total deposits were 22.1% and 46.2% respectively.
Loans
Domestic loans to the private sector grew slightly by 0.3% month-to-month to MOP93.4 billion. Among which, MOP20.4 billion was MOP-denominated and MOP66.8 billion was denominated in HKD, representing 21.8% and 71.5% of the total respectively. Meanwhile, external loans rose by 4.0% to MOP64.4 billion; of which, loans denominated in MOP and HKD accounted for 1.6% and 55.1% respectively of the total, at values of MOP1.0 billion and MOP35.5 billion. Loan-to-deposit ratios
As resident deposits and public sector deposits with the banking sector grew faster than domestic loans to the private sector, the loan-to-deposit ratio for the resident sector at end-July 2009 dropped by 1.0 percentage point month-to-month to 43.0%. The ratio for both the resident and non-resident sectors stood at 54.5%, down 0.3 percentage points.
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Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) distributed today gifts to tourists, organized a tray race and a banquet to celebrate World Tourism Day 2009. Earlier in the day, Director of MGTO, João Manuel Costa Antunes and Deputy Director Manuel Pires presented welcome gifts to tourists at the Macau Ferry Terminal and the Macau International Airport. Souvenirs were also distributed to visitors at MGTO Information Counters throughout the day. The lucky tourists of this year’s World Tourism Day were a Philippine couple at the Ferry Terminal and a Malaysian couple at the Macau International Airport. The traditional tray race was held in the afternoon, where waiters and waitresses ran down the stoned-path from the Ruins of St Paul's to Senado Square carrying a tray with a bottle of beer on it. The race attracted a total of 161 waiters and waitresses from 30 hotels and restaurants in Macau this year. Crowds of visitors and locals cheered for the participants. The winner of the men's division was Yang Hao from Sands Macao and the winner of the women’s division was Wu Chun Hao from 456 Modern Shanghai Cuisine. The Best Costume Awards went to Sardina Babel Luarez of Hard Rock Hotel and Hu Min Xia of Hotel Landmark Macau. In the evening, MGTO held a dinner banquet to celebrate World Tourism Day with local travel trade partners. On the occasion, Costa Antunes said that, “The theme of this year is ‘Tourism - Celebrating Diversity’. Macau is definitely the place where Chinese culture is integrated with Portuguese culture. The unique features have reflected in people’s living, architectures and cuisines. In addition, Macau is eager to explore the new tourism products, which will not only reveal the Sino-Western culture but also create sparkle with the old and the new elements. The attractiveness of Macau will be enhanced and Macau’s tourism industry will continue to diversify.” This is the 30th year since the celebrations of World Tourism Day on every September 27 were initiated by the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in 1980. The main purpose of World Tourism Day is to foster awareness among the international community of the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic values. Each year, World Tourism Organization selects a different theme for World Tourism Day. This year's theme is "Tourism - Celebrating Diversity" The host country for World Tourism Day 2009 is Ghana and official celebrations were held today (for more details check www.unwto.org/wtd/). Many other countries and regions also carried out activities to celebrate the day.
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Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Travel Mart 2009 closed today in Hangzhou. Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) led a delegation to the four-day trade show, holding a big promotion of Macau’s tourism at the event. With Macau being the host of next year’s PATA Travel Mart, the delegation took this opportunity to learn for 2010 and invite participants to come to Macau next year to attend the travel show. MGTO organized today at the Travel Mart a “Macau Day”, which included in the program the PATA Gold Awards Lunch (an MGTO sponsored event), a “PATA Travel Mart 2010 - Macau Welcome Dinner” and several cultural performances, introducing Macau’s characteristics to participating travel trade and media from all over the world, and inviting them to come to Macau September next year to participate at the PATA Travel Mart. PATA Chairman Phornsiri Manoharn, China National Tourism Administration (CNTA) Chairman Shao Qiwei and MGTO Director João Manuel Costa Antunes, among other guests, participated at the PATA Gold Awards Lunch. During the lunch, Chairman Shao Qiwei was conferred the PATA Award of Distinction 2009 to mark his outstanding contribution to the development of China tourism in his role as the head of the CNTA. PATA also presented plaques to the winners of this year’s Grand Awards, in four categories, and Gold Awards, in 22 categories, for the best in travel and tourism in the region. MGTO’s “Experience Macau” video received an Honorable Mention for Marketing Media – Promotional Travel Video. Lion dancers, Portuguese folk dancers, Venetian Gondoliers and Tuna Macanese Band flew from Macau to perform at the Travel Mart during the “Macau Day” activities, showcasing Macau’s unique blend of Chinese and Portuguese cultures. Close to twenty Macau travel agencies, hotels, and business tourism companies participated at the travel show. As the host of next year’s PATA Travel Mart, MGTO organized the “2010 PATA Travel Mart – Macau Welcome Dinner”. During the dinner, Costa Antunes said that “Macau participates at the PATA Travel Mart 2009, which closes today at this charming city of Hangzhou, with a strong delegation of tourism officials and travel trade, and we will go home packed with ideas on how to host an outstanding PATA Travel Mart after learning with the great work of the Hangzhou Tourism Commission hosts.” The dinner was cheered with Macau performances. PATA Travel Mart is Asia Pacific’s foremost travel contracting and networking show. This year’s edition attracted more than 1,000 delegates, including 600 sellers, and over 300 buyers, which occupied an exhibition area of more than 10,000 square meters. Following the Travel Mart, the PATA Board of Directors will meet. PATA Travel Mart 2010 will take place at The Venetian Macao-Resort-Hotel from 14 to 17 of September, with an expected attendance of around 1,000 participants. This press release is available at: www.macautourism.gov.mo
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In accordance with the exercise plan approved by the “Facilitation and Security Committee” at the beginning of 2009, an exercise of “Unlawful Seizure of an Aircraft” was conducted in Macau International Airport from 22:00 on 23 September to 03:00 on 24 September. The exercise was deemed satisfactory and achieved its goal. The exercise simulated acts of an unlawful seizure of an aircraft, en route to Macao, by four passengers on board. Upon receiving a report from the pilot and confirming the incident, the airport declared emergency. The Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) was activated. The threat was being analyzed and evaluated. Negotiations took place between the negotiation team and the hijackers. Eventually, the troops from the special operation group arrested the four hijackers. All the passengers and the aircraft crew were safely evacuated from the aircraft. The exercise, coordinated by the Public Security Police Force, involved the participation of 200 people representing Macao Customs Services, Security Forces Coordination Office, Judiciary Police, Fire Services Bureau, Health Bureau, Maritime Administration, Civil Aviation Authority, CAM-Macau International Airport Company Ltd, Administration of Airports, Ltd., Macau Security Company Ltd. (airport security), Air Macau Company Ltd. and Menzies Macau Airport Services Ltd. Exercises are carried out every year in Macau International Airport, with the objectives of testing and assessing the effectiveness of the Airport Emergency Plan and the Operational Plans of the responding entities in respect to command and control, coordination, communications, resource allocation and so on, as well as improving the ability of the participants in recognizing and dealing with aviation security emergencies and contributing to adjusting the measures contained in the Airport Emergency Plan. Such performance ensures the compliance of our security capacity with the Standards and Recommended Practices of International Civil Aviation Organization, guaranteeing that Macao is a safe and secure air hub in the world.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that the total number of visitor and non-resident arrivals reached 2,621,326 in August 2009; visitor arrivals for August 2009 increased by 6.4% year-on-year to 2,065,336. Analyzed by place of residence, visitors from Mainland China increased by 8.9% year-on-year to 1,050,357 (50.9% of visitor arrivals), with 499,448 travelling to Macao under the Individual Visit Scheme, down by 15.3% from August 2008 (589,575). Visitors from Hong Kong (666,700); Taiwan, China (125,931); and Japan (37,505) rose by 2.9%, 12.6% and 27.1% respectively; however, those from the Republic of Korea (25,727) and Malaysia (21,137) decreased by 15.4% and 13.9%. Same-day visitors (1,042,673) accounted for 50.5% of visitor arrivals, with 550,129 coming from Mainland China. The cumulative visitor arrivals totalled 14,191,418 in the first eight months of 2009, down by 9.6% year-on-year. Visitors from Mainland China (7,030,457); Hong Kong (4,574,626); Taiwan, China (860,662); and Malaysia (199,952) fell by 14.5%, 1.6%, 4.2% and 28.7% respectively; however, those from Japan (232,250) registered an increase of 4.6%. Cumulative number of same-day visitors accounted for 53.1% of total visitor arrivals, at 7,536,321. Analyzed by mode of transport, visitor arrivals by sea totalled 5,692,080 in the first eight months of 2009, down by 7.3% year-on-year. Visitors arriving at the Outer Harbour decreased by 24.6% to 3,950,737, while those arriving at the Provisional Ferry Terminal in Taipa surged by 143.8% to 1,555,490. Visitor arrivals by land dropped by 11.7% year-on-year to 7,464,425 in the first eight months of 2009; those arriving through the Border Gate totalled 6,932,085 and the majority were visitors from Mainland China (76.8%) and Hong Kong (15.1%). Visitor arrivals by air went down by 7.2% year-on-year to 1,034,913 in the first eight months of 2009. Visitors arriving at the Macao International Airport fell by 7.1% to 1,014,085, with the majority coming from Taiwan, China (39.4%), Mainland China (24.5%), Malaysia (7.7%) and Thailand (7.0%).
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The Monetary Authority of Macao released today the results of its mortgage loans survey. New Lending Approved For the second quarter of 2009, new residential mortgage loans (RMLs) approved by Macao banks increased notably by 74.3% quarter-to-quarter to MOP3.9 billion. Of which, 84.1% was extended to residents. In terms of approved value, new RMLs to residents and non-residents grew at respective rates of 67.9% and 118.6%. Meanwhile, new commercial real estate loans (CRELs) approved increased by 23.9% to MOP2.5 billion. Of which, 91.5% was granted to residents. In terms of approved value, new CRELs to residents rose 49.9%, while those to non-residents fell 57.0%. Outstanding Balances As at end-June 2009, the outstanding value of RMLs reached MOP36.8 billion, an increase of 4.6% compared with the previous quarter. 88.1% of the loans was extended to residents. RMLs to residents and non-residents grew at respective rates of 4.2% and 7.5% during the second quarter of 2009. Concurrently, the outstanding value of CRELs edged up 0.8% to MOP35.5 billion. Residents accounted for 86.3% of the loans. During the second quarter of 2009, CRELs to residents grew 2.0% while those to non-residents fell 5.8%. Delinquency Ratios At the end of June 2009, the delinquency ratio for RMLs stayed at 0.23%, while the ratio for CRELs slid 0.04 percentage points to 0.50%.
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