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Mainland domestic workers for Macao

Macao and Mainland officials would soon meet to discuss the importation of Mainland domestic workers to Macao, the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Francis Tam Pak Yuen, said today. Speaking to the press after a meeting with representatives from the Women’s General Association of Macau, Mr Tam said that at the invitation of the Ministry of Commerce, the Macao Government would visit the Ministry and study the mechanism of introducing domestic workers from the Mainland. Mr Tam said that was a demand for domestic workers in Macao, with more than 10,000 of them working here now. With the introduction of Mainland domestic workers, households in Macao would be given another source for domestic workers. However, Mr Tam reiterated that the Government would continue to uphold the principle of allowing imported workers only when there is a shortage of the same skills in Macao.


Package Tours and Hotel Occupancy Rate for July 2008

Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that Macao registered 406,346 visitor arrivals in package tours in July 2008, up by 27.0% from a year earlier. Visitors from Mainland China (282,412) and Southeast Asia (36,774) grew notably by 29.0% and 108.6% year-on-year, while those from Taiwan, China (24,978) decreased by 17.0%. In the first seven months of 2008, visitors arrived in package tours rose by 23.8% over the same period of 2007 to 2,819,196. The number of Macao residents travelling outbound in package tours in July 2008 decreased by 7.5% year-on-year to 19,797. Mainland China (61.5%), Thailand (10.1%) and Japan (8.1%) were the three most popular tour itineraries. In the first seven months of 2008, Macao residents travelling in package tours rose by 5.9% over the same period of 2007 to 126,392. Meanwhile, 34,765 residents travelled outbound under individual arrangements using services provided by travel agencies, down by 10.4% over July 2007. Hong Kong (46.5%), Mainland China (22.3%) and Taiwan, China (10.2%) were the major destinations. In the first seven months of 2008, Macao residents travelled under such arrangements rose by 10.8% year-on-year to 217,690. At the end of July 2008, the total number of guest rooms available in the hotel sector grew by 3,420 (+26.6%) from a year earlier to 16,279 rooms. In July 2008, a total of 587,624 guests checked into hotels and similar establishments, representing a year-on-year increase of 24.9%; the majority of the guests came from Mainland China (47.4%) and Hong Kong (25.9%). The average hotel occupancy rate rose by 1.2 percentage points to 78.9%, with 4-star hotels leading at 84.3%; in addition, the average length of stay of hotel guests extended by 0.1 night to 1.4 nights. Total number of hotel guests reached 3,795,209 in the first seven months of 2008, up by 19.9% over the same period of 2007. In the first seven months of 2008, visitor-guests staying in hotels accounted for 43.3% of the total number of tourists, up from 42.6% in the corresponding period of 2007.


Macau Government Tourist Office appoints Hume Whitehead as new representative in the UK and Irish markets

Following a comprehensive selection process, Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) has chosen Hume Whitehead Limited to raise the destination’s profile, communicate key messages and increase visitors from the UK and Irish markets. The appointment comes at an exciting time for Macau, one of the fastest growing destinations in 2008 and demonstrates MGTO’s commitment to the important UK market. The agency’s focus will be to ensure that the destination becomes a “must visit” on any Far East holiday, as well as the perfect location for business events and conventions. From the cultural appeal of the historic centre of Macau, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, to a wide-ranging programme of year round events and more recent developments such as state-of –art resorts, casinos and convention and entertainment facilities, Macau is evolving into one of the world’s most vibrant destinations. As well as high profile media activities to raise awareness and understanding of Macau amongst consumers, Hume Whitehead will work closely with the travel industry to increase distribution of Macau tourism programmes and increase sales through a range of partnership marketing campaigns. “The UK market is one of the most important outbound travel markets in the world and we are confident that Hume Whitehead's extensive experience and contacts will help us put Macau firmly on the map with UK and Irish consumers” said Mr. João Manual Costa Antunes, director of the MGTO. Sue Whitehead, director and co-founder of Hume Whitehead, said: “We are absolutely delighted to have been appointed to support Macau at such an exciting time and look forward to working with the MGTO team to promote the destination’s multi-dimensional attractions. Macau has something for everyone, a message we will be working hard to communicate over the forthcoming months.” During the first seven months of this year, Macau’s visitor arrivals reached 17.6million, an increase of 18.5% compared with the same period of 2007. Amongst this figure, Macau recorded more than 1.8 million international visitors, showing a 43.4% increase over the same period last year. The United Kingdom is the one of destination’s premier European source markets, with 77,973 visitors last year, a growth of 36.5%. Hume Whitehead is a representation and PR agency with clients across all areas of the travel industry including destinations, hotel groups and tour operators.


Chief Executive attends 12th CIFIT opening

The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, today attended the opening ceremony of the 12th China International Fair for Investment and Trade in Fujian, which was officiated at by Vice Premier, Mr Wang Qishan. Afterwards, Mr Ho and members of the Macao SAR Government delegation toured the Macao pavilion and took some group photos with businesspeople from Macao and officials of some Portuguese-speaking countries, before returning to Macao in the afternoon.


Chief Executive in Fujian for trade fair

The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, left Beijing today for Xiamen, Fujian, to attend tomorrow’s opening of 12th China International Fair for Investment and Trade. He was received by Vice Governor of Fujian Province, Mr Zhang Changping, at the airport, and soon afterwards he met with the Secretary of CPC Fujian Provincial Committee, Mr Lu Zhangong, and Governor, Mr Huang Xiaojing. In the evening, Mr Ho attended a welcoming dinner for participants of the 12th China International Fair for Investment and Trade. Tomorrow Mr Ho is scheduled to attend the opening ceremony of the trade fair and tour Macao’s pavilion at the fair. Macao’s officials attending the opening ceremony include the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Francis Tam Pak Yuen; the President of Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute, Mr Lee Peng Hong, and the Coordinator of the Supporting Office to the Permanent Secretariat to the Forum for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and Portuguese-speaking Countries, Ms Rita Botelho dos Santos. Delegations from a number of Portuguese-speaking countries, together with about 100 Macao businesspeople, are taking part in the trade and investment fair.


Macao expects 15 per cent growth in GDP

The Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Francis Tam Pak Yuen, said today he expected Macao’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) would grow by more than 15 per cert this year. Mr Tam was speaking to reporters at a seminar on Macao’s role as the economic co-operation and trading platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries. It was announced last week that Macao’s GDP jumped by 26.1 per cent in the first half of this year. Mr Tam said taking global economic slowdown into account, he expected Macao’s economic growth rate to shrink this year, but it would still reach 15 per cent. Speaking about the gaming industry, Mr Tam said the current restructure was necessary as it would give the city an opportunity to ensure its facilities, including the transport network and human resources, to keep pace with the gaming industry. He said he also expected gaming revenue to drop in the third quarter. Speaking on the employment of imported workers by gaming companies, Mr Tam said the Government had sent the Legislative Assembly a draft bill on imported workers, which, if passed, would require employers to pay a levy for employing imported workers, while the number of imported workers could not exceed a certain ratio. He also disclosed that the Government was studying plans submitted by six gaming operators on promoting more local workers.


Chief Executive leaves for Beijing Paralympic Games

The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, left Macao for Beijing this evening to attend the opening ceremony of the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games tomorrow evening. At the airport, Mr Ho was asked by reporters for comments about the effect of the new arrangement of Mainland visitors holding travel permit for Hong Kong and Macao or Hong Kong travel permit not allowed to visit Macao via Hong Kong. Mr Ho said that the effect on the number of visitors was inevitable soon after the implementation of the new arrangement on 1 Sept. However, he said he believed that the arrangement would be less influential to the number of visitors in the long run. On Sunday, the Chief Executive will visit Fujian to attend the 12th China International Fair for Investment and Trade. The Secretary for Administration and Justice, Ms Florinda Chan, will be Acting Chief Executive while Mr Ho is away.


Catalogue Show of Danish Products and Services (08/09/2008 – 19/09/2008)

A Catalogue Show of Danish Products and Services, jointly organised by the Royal Danish Consulate General - Invest in Denmark and Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM), will be held from 8th September to 19th September 2008 (9am to 6 pm, Mondays to Fridays) at IPIM’s Macao Business Support Centre (Alameda Dr. Carlos d'Assumpçao No. 263, Edif. China Civil Plaza, 19 Andar, Macau). The captioned event is going to be the first European country-themed Catalogue Show ever held in MBSC. Being a Scandinavian country, Denmark’s major national output rely on construction, logistics, information and communications, energy and food industries. Major exports range from petroleum and related products, bio-med products, industrial equipment and machinery, meat and meat products. In 2007, imports from Denmark reached 100 million Macau patacas, of which included wrist watches, food and meat products, electrical appliances and smoking tobacco. Compared with import value of 60.6 million in 2006, a 66.2% year on year increase is achieved. Till June 2008, total import value already reached 52.5 million patacas. Co-ordinated by Invest in Denmark, the theme of the Show will be Investment Opportunities and Prospects of Denmark. Over 40 types of Catalogues will be on display, which include travel and tourism, investment, Information and Communication Technology, Renewable Energy and Med-Bio Technology and Creative Denmark etc. There are altogether 24 types of investment guides to various industries of Denmark. Product pamphlets of 10 Danish companies in the collection include, medical equipment and instruments, furniture, decorative lightings and pastries and are looking for product agents and distributors in Macao. Local SMEs in search for partners or distribution rights from Denmark or any other interested parties are cordially invited to visit the Show at MBSC during office hours (9am to 6 pm). For enquiries, please contact Mr Ho or Ms Leong of Small and Medium Enterprise Service Centre (28728212) or visit IPIM’s website and Macao Trade and Invest Kiosk.


“Museums in Macao” Portal Website Design was published

Representatives from local museums attended the award presentation ceremony held on 29 August for the “Museums in Macao” Portal webpage design competition at the Tourism Activities Centre. Cheang Hoi San and Ng Lik Hang received the public group Honorary awards, Wong Kun Kun and Ho Sok Ieng received the student group Honorary awards. Among them, Cheang Hoi San’s design will be adopted for the future “Museums in Macao” portal website. The competition, as one activity of the “2008 International Museum Day” (IMD), was organised by museums in Macao to establish a centralised portal to the information of local museums through engaging the public in designing outstanding webpages with their creativity. Many entries were received since the announcement of the competition in May, the judges from various museums selected the winners according to the theme, functionality, aesthetic and creativity of their designs. The winning designs can be viewed on the 2008 IMD website at http://macao.communications.museum/2008imd.


Jetfoil collides with fishing boat

A Cotai bound jetfoil collided with a Mainland fishing boat about 7.5 nautical miles off Macao at 11:44 am today, killing one person on the boat. Two other persons on the boat and one passenger on the jetfoil were injured and sent to Hospital Centre S. Januario for treatment. The jetfoil left Hong Kong at 11 am with 130 passengers and 13 crewmembers on board. The Marine Administration and Macao Customs took part in the rescue operation immediately after they learned of the collision.


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