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The Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Mr Chui Sai On, has returned from Thailand after leading a delegation to attend the 55th Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Annual Conference held in the beach resort of Pattaya between 23-27 April. During his visit, Mr Chui met with the Deputy Director of China National Tourism Administration, Mr Gu Zhaoxi, and the President of PATA, Mr Nobutaka Ishikure. Mr Chui and the delegation attended the opening ceremony and hosted a luncheon on behalf of the Macao Government for delegates from all over the world. At a speeh during the luncheon, Mr Chui said tourism is one of the most important economic pillars of Macao and having been named Historical City in the World Heritage List by UNESCO last year had further strengthened Macao's tourism brendname. Matching the theme of "Changing Lifestyles -- New Opportunities" for the conference this year, Mr Chui highlighted how to capitalise on new opportunities after human living patterns had changed and affected the travelling ways and manners -- an important study topic for the tourism industry. Mr Chui also attended the ministerial breakfast meeting where he exchanged views and updated the attendees on the latest development in Macao.. He also met with the Cambodia's Minister of Tourism, Mr Lay Prohas, when they agreed to strengthen co-operation and exchange. Mr Chui also invited Mr Lay to visit Macao. The Macao Government Tourist Office became a member of PATA in 1966: in 1983 a branch of PATA was set up in Macao. With the support of the Government and the tourism industry, the 54th PATA Annual Conference was held in Macao last year.
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Teaming up with Japan Airlines (JAL), Highest International Standards (HIS), the 2nd largest travel agency in Japan, co-organized a group of Japanese individual travelers who flew on JAL’s first charter flight to Macau on May 4. Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) welcomed the flight upon arrival. A full house of 230 passengers departed Nagoya late night on May 3 and arrived Macau at 1 a.m. on May 4. A group of Portuguese Folk Dancers distributed souvenirs to welcome the visitors from Japan. While HIS previously has worked with other airlines to organize charter flights to Macau, this is the first time that HIS is cooperating with the largest airline in Japan, JAL to organize a charter flight for 230 Japanese individual travelers to Macau for a 4-day visit. Established in 1951, Japan Airlines (JAL) is the largest airline company in Japan with over 100 offices and 14,000 staffs around the globe. At present, JAL operates airlinks with 213 airports in 35 countries and regions, with a total of 276 international air services (239 for passenger and 37 for freight) and 164 domestic passenger air services. This is also the first time for JAL to launch a flight to the Macau International Airport. This year, JAL plans to operate 800 charter flight services, an increase of 10% compared with last year. The charter flights include destinations such as Palau, Alaska, Alice Springs, Urumuqi and Ulan Bator. In addition, JAL will also operate charter flights for U.S. major-league baseball. In July this year, JAL will operate an own-use charter for a soccer team to Macau. MGTO has a good relationship with JAL and has received their delegation in January this year. The purpose of organizing the first charter flight cooperation between HIS and JAL to Macau is to explore the potential of the tourism market of Macau as well as the Macau International Airport. Japan is the 4th largest market for Macau. Last year, Macau received close to 170,000 visitors from Japan, an increment of 38% compared with 2004. By the end of May, MGTO will carry out large-scale promotional activities in Tokyo, Osaka, Kobe and Kyoto. With the theme of the “Historic Centre of Macau” and the “Macau Grand Prix”, MGTO wishes to encourage more visitors from Japan to visit Macau.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicates that, in March 2006, Macao’s total value of exports amounted to MOP1.74 billion, up 42.5% over the same month of 2005. Among this, the value of domestic exports increased 61.0% to MOP1.25 billion and the value of re-exports rose 10.5% to MOP494 million. Value of imports amounted to MOP2.95 billion, up 29.5% over the same period of 2005. A trade deficit of MOP1.21 billion was recorded this month. During the period of January – March 2006, the value of total exports increased 36.4% year-on-year to MOP4.77 billion. In addition, both the values of domestic exports and re-exports increased 47.7% and 11.3% respectively. Moreover, the value of imports amounted to MOP7.69 billion, up 28.3% over the same period of 2005. In the first three months of 2006, Macao’s trade balance registered a deficit of MOP2.92 billion. During this period, the exports/imports ratio increased from 58.4% in the corresponding period of 2005 to 62.1%. In the first three months of 2006, the value of Textile & garment exports, which accounted for 76.1% of the total exports, increased 42.6% over the same period of 2005. In addition, the value of Non-textile exports also rose 19.9%. As the major components of non-textile exports, Machines & apparatus, parts & accessories thereof and Footwear both expanded 8.7% and 7.7% respectively, year-on-year. The USA and the EU remained as Macao’s major export markets, together making up 68.2% of the total value of exports. Among this, exports to the USA, which made up 51.1% of the total value of exports, increased 52.3% over the same period of 2005; exports to the EU, which made up 17.1% of the total value of exports, also increased 77.6% over the same period of 2005. During the period of January – March 2006, Macao’s total value of imports increased 28.3% year-on-year, mainly due to the increase in the value of imports by broad economic categories, namely Fuels & lubricants (50.1%), Capital goods (28.8%), Consumer goods (28.1%) and Raw materials & semi-manufactures (22.4%). Meanwhile, Macao’s main suppliers of imported goods still concentrated in the Asian region. Imports from Mainland China and Hong Kong together constituted 53.0% of the total value of imports. Compared with the same period of 2005, the value of imports from Mainland China and Hong Kong rose 44.8% and 26.1% respectively.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service shows that in the first quarter of 2006, the average daily nominal wage of construction workers continued to rise. This upward trend had remained for seven consecutive quarters. The overall average daily nominal wage was MOP474, of which skilled workers & semi-skilled workers was MOP506 and unskilled workers MOP315. Among the various occupations of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers, the average daily nominal wage of structural iron erectors was the highest, reaching MOP596. The overall nominal wage index increased 3.8% from the previous quarter. The nominal wage index of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers rose 2.8%, and that of unskilled workers went up 11.7%. Among the various occupations of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers, the nominal wage index of plumbers rose the most, up 10.5%, whereas that of scaffolders registered the largest decline, down 10.5%. On the other hand, the overall real wage index increased 2.7% compared with the fourth quarter of 2005. The real wage index of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers rose 1.7%, and that of unskilled workers went up 10.5%. Compared with the first quarter of 2005, the overall real wage index increased 19.9%, of which the index of skilled workers & semi-skilled workers rose 19.5%, and that of unskilled workers went up 22.9%.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that number of licensed vehicles in Macao reached 155,587 at the end of March 2006, of which 51% (79,824) were motorcycles and 42% (64,939) were light private vehicles. Registration of new vehicles grew by 8% year-on-year to 4,438 in the first quarter of 2006, motorcycles and light vehicles accounted for 61% and 36% respectively. In the first quarter of 2006, there were 3,092 cases of traffic accidents, an increase of 1% over the same period of 2005, resulting in 1,003 casualties and 4 of them were killed. Traffic flow by land between Macao and Mainland China rose by 8% to 777,075 vehicle trips. The Border Gate was the major passage that took up 82% of the total, while the Checkpoint of CoTai recorded 142,068 vehicle trips. In this quarter, arrivals and departures of commercial flights at the Macao International Airport totalled 11,296, up by 14% over 2005. Taiwan, China and Mainland China were the major routes that accounted for 48% and 34% of the total commercial flights to/from Macao. At the Outer Harbour, helicopter flights between Macao and Hong Kong registered a 10% year-on-year increase to 3,833. Besides, 720 helicopter flights were recorded between Macao and Mainland China. Passenger transport by sea between Hong Kong and Macao rose by 2% to 20,039 ferry trips compared with the first quarter of 2005, while passenger ferry run between Macao and Mainland China jumped by 37% to 3,600 trips. For containerized cargo, total seaborne container throughput was 29,206 TEUs or 21,332 seaborne containers handled, representing increases of 27% and 25% over the first quarter of 2005. Outward air cargos handled at the Macao International Airport registered a year-on-year drop of 3% to 20,278 tonnes in the first quarter of 2006. Major destinations were Taiwan, China; Mainland China and the United States, which accounted for 68%, 17% and 6% of the total outward cargos. Concurrently, inward air cargos fell slightly by 1% to 6,090 tonnes where those from Taiwan, China accounted for 91% of the total. Moreover, transit cargos by air showed a notable year-on-year increase of 43% to reach 27,540 tonnes in the first quarter of 2006. At the end of March 2006, number of fixed line telephone totalled 174,749, mobile telephone and stored value GSM card users reached 548,147 when the number of internet services subscribers increased by 15% to 92,291. The cumulative usage of internet services reached 25.11 million hours in the first quarter of 2006, up by 58% over the same period of 2005.
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According to the results of the Employment Survey released by the Statistics and Census Service, unemployment rate for January - March 2006 was held stable 3.9%, same as that for December 2005 - February 2006, and decreased by 0.2 percentage point over the same period of 2005. The underemployment rate was up slightly by 0.1 percentage point over December 2005 - February 2006 to 1.0%, but fell by 0.1 percentage point compared with the same period of 2005. Number of the unemployed searching for their first job was about 700, representing 7.1% of the total unemployed population, down by 1.3 percentage points over December 2005 - February 2006. Compared with December 2005 - February 2006, the unemployment situation was improved in the Construction sector and Hotels & similar activities, while it was less favourable in Restaurants & similar activities and the Manufacturing sector. Total labour force was estimated at 265,800 in January - March 2006; the employed and the unemployed populations were 255,400 and 10,400 respectively. Labour force participation rate was 64.7%, up by 0.2 and 2.2 percentage points respectively over December 2005 - February 2006 and the same period of 2005. Administrative information from the Labour Affairs Bureau and the Public Security Police indicated that number of non-resident workers with working permits totalled 47,876 at the end of March 2006, an increase of 21.5% over December 2005. Please refer to the attached table for detailed information on non-resident workers by industry.
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Today, Macau is more than just a destination for gaming and entertainment. In the last two years or so, Macau has transformed into a much sought after holiday destination with a wider appeal. Macau now attracts young couples, families and even the business tourism market. Macau is about unique culture; it’s about colourful festivals and events; about heritage; about food; and good, fun as well as the traditional appeal of gaming. Underlining this change in appeal, Macau was added to UNESCO’s prestigious World Heritage List in 2005. Twenty-five of Macau’s landmarks form The Historic Centre of Macau and give the destination a world class level of appeal. The unique blend of Chinese and Portuguese architecture makes it like no other city in Asia. Last year, some 82,300 visitors from Singapore enjoyed the delights of this Special Administration Region of China – representing a growth of about 80 percent over the number in 2004 and one of its fastest growing markets. International visitors that year climbed 12 percent to a record of 18.7 million. In order to share this message with all in Singapore and to attract an even higher visitorship, the Macau Government Tourist Office (MGTO) in Singapore is organizing a ‘Step into Macau’ event at CHIJMES from 28 to 30th April 2006 between 11.00 am and 6.00 pm daily. The Macau fair promises a whole range of exciting events ranging from cultural performances and sampling of Macanese snacks to fun activities for the children like face painting, art competitions and even a mini-motorcar ‘Grand Prix’. Appearances by local radio celebrities over the three-day event will add a glam factor. Some 25 air-tickets on Tiger Airways will be given away to visitors at special lucky draws held at the fair – this amounts to practically one ticket being given away every hour! More attractive and uniquely Macanese prizes await visitors in the spin and win contest and by guessing the number of cookie boxes stuffed into a specially decorated ‘Macau Taxi’. The fair will also showcase some of the attractions of Macau like the Macau Tower, Fisherman’s Wharf and some soon to open Integrated Resorts like the Wynn Resort and Galaxy Starworld. And for those that are convinced on making Macau their next holiday destination, a select group of travel agents will be on hand to take travel bookings at a special, not-to-be missed, price! MGTO Director João Manuel Costa Antunes said, “this is one of the biggest ever consumer promotions to be held by us in Singapore. It is a reflection of our optimism in further growth of visitorship from this market. We also want to share the message that Macau is fast becoming an attractive, world-class destination which is just a short flight away from Singapore and a perfect, quick holiday getaway”. He added that, “this is also a special time to visit as the Macau Government Tourist Office has designated 2006 as Macau World Heritage Year”.
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Statistics and Census Service announced that the Composite CPI for March 2006 was 106.63, down by 0.12% over the previous month. The decrease was mainly attributable to the price discount offered in long-distance call (IDD), price reduction in the seasonal sales of men’s and women’s clothing, lower prices of fresh flowers and outbound package tours; therefore, the indices of Communication; Clothing & footwear; and Recreation & culture fell by 4.36%, 0.97% and 0.64% respectively. On the other hand, the increase in rentals for housing and higher gasoline prices led to the increase in the indices of Housing & fuels (+0.67%); and Transport (+0.30%). Composite CPI for March 2006 registered a year-on-year increase of 5.19%. For the 12 months ended March 2006, the average Composite CPI increased by 4.96% over the previous period. In addition, the CPI-A and CPI-B for March 2006 were 107.52 and 106.41, which decrease by 0.15% and 0.10% compared with February. In comparison with the same period of 2005, Composite CPI for the first quarter of 2006 rose by 5.48%, with notable increase in the indices of Housing & fuels (+13.38%); and Education (+9.31%). Starting from January 2006, the CPI has been rebased to July 2004 to June 2005, apart from the compilation of the Composite CPI that reflects the impacts of price changes for the general population, two indices are compiled to show the influences of price changes for households in different expenditure ranges. The CPI-A relates to about 49% of households, which had an average monthly expenditure of MOP 3,000 to MOP 9,999; the CPI-B relates to about 31% of households, which had an average monthly expenditure of MOP 10,000 to MOP 19,999.
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Information from Statistics and Census Service showed that visitor arrivals reached a total of 1,812,699 in March 2006, representing a year-on-year increase of 18.2%. Visitors from Mainland China and Hong Kong grew 26.2% and 7.1% respectively, whereas those form Taiwan, China dropped 3.7%. Meanwhile, same-day visitors accounted for 52.5% of the total arrivals, at 951,060. Visitors came mainly from Mainland China (57.6% of the total), Hong Kong (28.7%) and Taiwan, China (6.8%). Among those from Mainland China, 525,880 (50.4%) arrived in Macao under the Individual Visit Scheme. In the first quarter of 2006, visitor arrivals totalled 5,248,018, a 17.7% increase over the same period of last year. Visitors from Mainland China rose 19.8% to 2,977,763, which accounted for 56.7% of the total arrivals; those from Hong Kong and Taiwan, China shared 30.4% and 6.3% respectively. Furthermore, same-day visitors made up 52.5% of the total, at 2,753,868. Analyzed by mode of transport, visitors arrived by sea increased 18.7% to 1,890,662 in the first quarter of 2006, with 1,789,355 arriving at the Outer Harbour (+15.5%); the majority of these visitors were from Hong Kong (58.2%) and Mainland China (30.9%). Visitor arrivals at the Inner Harbour leaped 131.8% to 101,307 while 60.6% were from Mainland China. At the same time, visitors arriving through the Border Gate rose 27.0% to 3,072,237. The majority of the visitors came from Mainland China (75.0%) and Hong Kong (17.6%). In addition, visitor arrivals by air were 285,119, up 16.8% compared with the same period of last year, with 282,092 arrived at the Macao International Airport (+16.8%). Visitors from Taiwan, China (53.6%) and Mainland China (20.7%) were the major users of this access.
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The Chief Executive, Mr Edmund Ho Hau Wah, has disclosed that the Government had initiated studies on the future diversification of the overall economic structure of Macao. Mr Ho was speaking to reporters during his visit to Hainan to attend the opening session of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2006, where he also met with the Vice President, Mr Zheng Qinghong, last Friday. Mr Ho said he had briefed the Vice President on recent developments and the idea to adequately diversify Macao’s economy while maintaining its advantages. He said Mr Zheng told him that the Central Government, with constant support for Macao’s development, also hoped that the whole society, especially the industrial and business sectors, could contribute to the stability and the moderate diversification of Macao’s overall economy. Mr Ho said that the studies could come up with suggestions between six to 12 months and he hoped that a consensus could be reached among different sectors of the society, especially among the industrial and business sectors in capitalising on the Central Government’s support and to make adjustments that would enable the moderate diversification of the economy. He said diversification was a long-term goal and the necessary route for Macao’s sustainable development: the SAR Government anticipated active participation of the industry and business sectors, and would co-ordinate policies and resources to make way for that. He said it would take years for these efforts to bear fruit and this generation should lay the foundation and create necessary conditions for the future. On tourism, Mr Ho said Sanya City had much tourism recourses that were complementary to Macao and, as members of the Pan-Pearl River Delta Region, there were great potentials in tourism co-operation between Macao and Hainan. On Sunday evening, Mr Ho met with the Secretary of CPC Hainan Provincial Committee, Mr Wang Xiaofeng, both sides agreed that Macao and Hainan could complement one another in tourism. During his visit, Mr Ho also met with the Governor of Hainan Province, Mr Wei Liucheng; and the Mayor of Sanya City, Mr Lu Zhiyuan.
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