News

According to the results of the Employment Survey released by the Statistics and Census Service, the unemployment rate for May-July 2008 rose slightly by 0.1 percentage point over the previous period (April-June 2008) to 2.9% due to the rising number of job-seekers in the Summer Holiday, but dropped by 0.2 percentage point year-on-year. The underemployment rate remained unchanged from the previous period, at 1.6%, but up by 0.5 percentage point year-on-year. Total labour force was 334,000 in May-July 2008; the labour force participation rate stood at 70.7%, up by 0.2 and 1.2 percentage points respectively from the previous period and the corresponding period of 2007. The employed population rose by 2,700 over the previous period to 324,000, with increases in the number of persons working in the Construction sector and Retail Trade, but decrease in the Manufacturing sector. The unemployed population was 9,800, an increase of 700 from the previous period, with 1,300 (12.9% of the total) searching for their first job, up by 6.7 percentage points over the previous period.
…

The Government had asked a low-cost airline operator to explain why it had cancelled a flight without informing passengers. The Secretary for Transport and Public Works, Mr Lau Si Io, said the Civil Aviation Authority had instructed that operator to submit a report and include suggestions to avoid a repeat of the incident. Some 120 passengers turned up at Macao International Airport last Sunday to find their flight to Vietnam had been cancelled. Mr Lau said it was regrettable that the cancellation brought inconvenience to passengers. He said the operator should explain and provide assistance to the affected passengers.
…

The number of crimes recorded in the first half of this year saw an increase of 11.3 per cent compared with the same period last year. Releasing the crime statistics for the first half of 2008 at a press conference today, the Secretary for Security, Mr Cheong Kuok Va, said the police would continue to fight crimes and that they would also target minor offences. Minor offences, such as pick-pocketing, went up by 44.5 per cent, an increase from 384 to 555 cases. Mr Cheong said the police would deploy more officers at major attractions during the tourism high season to prevent and fight pick-pocketing. The total number of crimes recorded in the six months stood at 6,928. However, the number of intimidation, forgery and transferring counterfeit money cases fell by 24.7 and 36.9 per cent. The number of arson, drugs trafficking, loan sharking and robbery cases went up by 114.3, 70.3, 44.3 and 32.5 per cent respectively. Juvenile crimes went down by 17.3 per cent, from 98 to 81 cases, with 148 young people having been involved in criminal activities. In the same period, the police have arrested 2,069 people and transferred them to the Public Prosecutions Office. The number of people arrested increased by 18.8 per cent compared with the same period last year. A total of 42,897 illegal immigrants and overstayers were caught during this period.
…

Information of the Statistics and Census Service indicated that resident population of Macao was estimated at 552,000 as at 30 June 2008, an increase of about 26,000 from a year earlier. In the second quarter of 2008, there were 1,093 live births, up by 1.6% over the preceding quarter, with male babies accounting for 55.1%. The number of mortality cases was 387 and the major underlying causes of death were “Malignant neoplasms” and “Diseases of the circulatory system”. Meanwhile, 1 case of fetal mortality was recorded. The Health Bureau received 778 cases of Notifiable diseases in this quarter, an increase of 190 cases over the preceding quarter, including 302 cases of “Hand, foot and mouth diseases”, 188 cases of “Varicella (chickenpox)” and 89 cases of “Tuberculosis of lung”. In addition, 742 cases of marriage were registered, up by 8.5% over the first quarter of 2008. The number of legal immigrants from Mainland China totalled 715 in the second quarter of 2008, an increase of 200 over the preceding quarter; meanwhile, 307 illegal immigrants were repatriated. The end-quarter balance of individuals authorized to reside in Macao went up by 2,199 over the first quarter of 2008 to 45,491. The end-quarter balance of non-resident workers totalled 98,505, an increase of 8,492 over the first quarter of 2008.
…

Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that visitor arrivals totalled 2,663,593 in July 2008, a year-on-year increase of 20.7%. Visitors from Mainland China (1,533,041) and Hong Kong (778,227) rose by 29.9% and 8.8% respectively, while those from Taiwan, China (115,103) decreased by 7.0%. Same-day visitors took up 52.6% of the total arrivals, at 1,401,478. The majority of the visitors came from Mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan, China, which accounted for 57.6%, 29.2% and 4.3% of the total respectively. Among the Mainland visitors, 39.2% (601,562) travelled to Macao under the Individual Visit Scheme. In the first seven months of 2008, visitor arrivals reached 17,589,197, up by 18.5% year-on-year. Visitors from Mainland China (10,309,273) and Hong Kong went up by 27.5% and 0.2% respectively, while those from Taiwan, China dropped by 4.7%. Furthermore, same-day visitors made up 52.9% of the total arrivals, at 9,304,322. Analyzed by mode of transport, visitor arrivals by sea went up by 12.5% over the first seven months of 2007 to 5,574,231. Among them, 4,849,353 arrived at the Outer Harbour (+3.9%), with 57.7% from Hong Kong and 22.6% from Mainland China. Visitor arrivals by land grew by 21.5% to 11,019,081. Visitors arriving through the Border Gate increased by 16.4% to 10,425,549 and the majority were visitors from Mainland China (79.6%) and Hong Kong (14.4%). In addition, visitor arrivals by air totalled 995,885, up by 21.2% over the first seven months of 2007. Visitors arriving at the Macao International Airport rose by 19.9% to 975,297, with those from Taiwan, China (35.3%), Southeast Asia (30.3%) and Mainland China (22.0%) as the major users.
…

Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that the Composite CPI for July 2008 rose by 9.22% year-on-year to 125.77, of which the price indices of Food & non-alcoholic beverages, Health and Transport soared by 19.97%, 14.56% and 12.70% respectively. Among the subgroups of Food & non-alcoholic beverages, notable increase was observed in the prices of canned meat (+77.22%), rice (+67.30%), fresh beef (+61.35%), edible oil (+53.73%), fresh water fish (+46.07%), fresh pork (+36.81%), vegetables (+41.79%) and chilled or frozen pork (+40.47%). For the subgroups of Health and Transport, charges for medical consultation service (+25.53%) and prices of unleaded gasoline (+29.69%) registered marked increase. Although substantial increase was recorded in the price indices of LP Gas (+26.47%), charges for maintenance & repair services of dwelling (+20.65%) and rentals for housing (+14.36%), the electricity subsidy provided by the Government slowed down the year-on-year increment of the index of Housing & fuels to 6.72%. On the contrary, the price indices of Communication and Education decreased by 6.88% and 5.83% respectively year-on-year due to reduced charges of mobile phone services and higher government subsidies to students studying in schools that did not join the free education network. The CPI-A and CPI-B for July 2008 were 127.91 and 125.13, up by 9.57% and 9.10% respectively year-on-year. The Composite CPI for July 2008 increased by 0.84% month-to-month, with the price indices of Food & non-alcoholic beverages; Recreation & culture; and Transport rising by 1.99%, 0.73% and 0.71% respectively, on account of dearer prices of vegetables caused by continuous rain, higher charges for outbound package tours during Summer Holiday and rising airfares. Meanwhile, the CPI-A and CPI-B increased by 1.07% and 0.78% respectively month-to-month.
The average Composite CPI for January to July went up by 9.03% over the same period of 2007. For the 12 months ended July 2008, the Composite CPI rose by 7.99% over the preceding period. The Composite CPI reflects the impacts of price changes on the general population. The CPI-A relates to about 49% of households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP3,000 to MOP9,999. The CPI-B relates to about 31% of households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP10,000 to MOP19,999.
…

Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that the value of retail sales for the second quarter of 2008 was estimated at MOP4.60 billion. Retail sales of watches, clocks & jewellery took the largest share of 19% of the total, which was followed by sales of goods in department stores (12%), motor vehicles (10%), goods in supermarkets (9%), adults' clothing (9%), automotive fuels (5%), fuels for household use (4%), cosmetics and sanitary articles (3%), goods in pharmacies (3%) and communication equipment (3%). The value of retail sales in this quarter rose by 40% from MOP3.28 billion in the second quarter of 2007, with marked increases in the sales of watches, clocks & jewellery; goods in department stores; adults’ clothing; goods in supermarket; and motor vehicles. In comparison with the previous quarter, the value of retail sales in this quarter increased slightly by 1%. In the first half year of 2008, value of total retail sales amounted to MOP9.15 billion, up remarkably by 43% year-on-year. In the second quarter of 2008, about 44% of the retailers reported decrease in the sales volume from the first quarter, up by 9 percentage points over the corresponding figure in the previous quarter; about 56% reported that the sales volume remained stable or increased. In terms of retail prices, about 61% reported that the prices were stable, 21% stated that the prices increased whereas 18% reported the prices decreased. Compared with the second quarter of 2007, about 64% said that the stock level was normal in this quarter, while 20% indicated that the stock level was low. Regarding the business prospect for the third quarter of 2008, about 60% expected the sales volume to increase or remain stable compared with the second quarter, whereas 40% expected it to decrease. Meanwhile, about 80% expected the retail prices to remain stable or increase, while 20% expected it to decrease.
…

The Statistics and Census Service released results of the Employment Survey for the second quarter of 2008. Principal indicators such as the labour force participation rate, unemployment rate, etc. was published in July. Total labour force was 330,000 in the second quarter of 2008, comprising 321,000 employed and 9,100 unemployed. Compared with the first quarter, total labour force registered an increase of 3,900, with the employed rising by 4,400 and the unemployed declining by 500. Analysed by industry, the majority of the employed population were engaging in Recreational, Cultural, Gaming & Other Services (24.7%) and Hotels, Restaurants & Similar Activities (12.7%). In terms of occupation, most of the employed population were Clerks (including casino dealers, floorpersons, betting service operators, etc.) and Service & Sales Workers, accounting for 24.6% and 22.5% respectively. The overall median monthly employment earnings was MOP8,000 in the second quarter of 2008, with the median of those working in Recreational, Cultural, Gaming & Other Services amounting to MOP12,000; meanwhile, median monthly employment earnings of the employed residents stood at MOP 9,000. In the second quarter of 2008, the underemployed population totalled 5,200, with 65.0% engaging in the Construction sector and 10.5% in the Manufacturing sector. Within the unemployed, 6.2% were searching for their first job, while 93.8% had worked previously and were searching for a new job. With regard to the educational attainment, 45.5% of the unemployed had primary or lower education; 27.7% had junior secondary education and 19.4% had senior secondary education. For the unemployed that were searching for a new job, analyzed by industry previously engaged, 26.6% had worked in Construction and 17.4% in Hotels, Restaurants & Similar Activities. In terms of the previous occupation, 30.1% were Unskilled workers and 23.7% were Service & sales workers.
…

Macao will inject 1.17 billion RMB for 17 reconstruction projects in Sichuan to mark its support to the quake-hit province. These would include homes for farmers, schools, health centres and other facilities, the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Mr Chui Sai On, told reporters after a meeting with Sichuan’s officials this morning. Mr Chui, who chairs Macao’s supporting committee to Sichuan reconstruction works, was in the province for a three-day fact-finding visit with members of the committee. Considering the living condition of farmers, projects involving homes for farmers will start first among the others, Mr Chui said. The safety of these projects and appropriate usage of capital will be monitored and guaranteed. These 17 reconstruction projects, expected to be completed by the end of 2010, are in the initial phase of Macao’s support to the province. Macao has pledged 5 billion patacas for the province’s reconstruction. To help reinvigorate Sichuan’s tourism industry, Macao would invite Sichuan’s officials to hold promotional events in Macao and organise Macao’s reporters and businesspeople in tourism sector to visit the province, Mr Chui said. Mr Chui and the committee returned to Macao in the afternoon.
…

Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that per-capita spending of visitors for the second quarter of 2008 increased by 9% year-on-year to MOP 1,613. Per-capita spending of Mainland visitors took the lead, at MOP 3,357 and that of Hong Kong visitors was MOP 992. Compared with the second quarter of 2007, per-capita spending of tourists went up by 14% to MOP 2,367, however, per-capita spending of same-day visitors was MOP 464, a drop of 16%. Per-capita non-shopping spending (excluding gaming expenses) of visitors grew by 11% year-on-year to MOP 975, of which the expenses on accommodation and food & beverage accounted for 44% and 37% respectively. However, per-capita shopping spending rose by 5% to MOP 638, with the expenses on local food products and clothing sharing 30% and 17% respectively. Per-diem spending of visitors was MOP 1,416, an increase of 2% over the second quarter of 2007. Mainland visitors had the highest per-diem spending, at MOP 2,148. The average length of stay of visitors held stable at 1.1 days as the second quarter of 2007. The average of tourists increased by 0.1 day to 1.7 days and that of same-day visitors stayed unchanged at 0.2 day.
…