News

According to statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, broad money supply grew marginally in February. As total loans increased at a faster pace than total deposits, the overall loan-to-deposit ratio of the banking sector rose from a month earlier. Money supply Currency in circulation grew 4.2% while demand deposits dropped 3.6%. M1 thus decreased 2.4% from one month earlier. Concurrently, quasi-monetary liabilities grew 0.6%. The sum of these two items, i.e. M2, rose 0.2% to MOP390.7 billion. On an annual basis, M1 and M2 rose 33.8% and 25.8% respectively. The share of Pataca (MOP) in M2 stood at 24.6%, down 0.4 percentage points from a month ago or 1.6 percentage points from a year earlier. The share of Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) in M2 was 54.6%, down 0.4 percentage points month-to-month but up 0.7 percentage points year-on-year. Deposits Resident deposits rose 0.2% from the preceding month to MOP382.5 billion. Of which, MOP deposits and HKD deposits decreased at respective rates of 2.1% and 0.5% while other foreign currency deposits grew 4.6%. Non-resident deposits dropped 0.8% to MOP133.7 billion whereas public sector deposits with the banking sector increased 7.0% to MOP52.5 billion. As a result, total deposits with the banking sector rose 0.5% from a month earlier to MOP568.7 billion. The shares of MOP and HKD in total deposits were 20.6% and 47.2% respectively. Loans Domestic loans to the private sector increased 0.9% from a month ago to MOP207.2 billion. Among which, MOP65.8 billion was MOP-denominated and MOP123.0 billion was denominated in HKD, representing 31.7% and 59.4% of the total respectively. On the other hand, external loans increased 3.2% to MOP234.9 billion; of which, loans denominated in MOP and HKD accounted for 1.0% (MOP2.2 billion) and 22.3% (MOP52.5 billion) respectively. Loan-to-deposit ratios The loan-to-deposit ratio for the resident sector at end-February remained virtually unchanged from the previous month at 47.6%. The ratio for both the resident and non-resident sectors was 77.7%, up 1.2 percentage points from end-January. For enquiry, please contact:
Research and Statistics Department, Monetary Authority of Macao (Tel: 83952532; Fax: 28353042)
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As scheduled, the two notes issuing banks and participating banks started the exchange on 1 March 2013, which will last until 30 August 2013. Thanks to the support and cooperation on the part of the banks involved and registrants, the process has so far been smooth and orderly. To ensure proper implementation, the Monetary Authority of Macao (AMCM) has issued guidelines to banks involved for the detailed arrangement, which includes the setting up of special counters for the purpose, submitting relevant statistical information at regular intervals, procedures for appointment of authorized representatives, and reminding the banks that they are not entitled to disposing the left-over notes at their discretion. To ensure orderly completion of the application, registrants are advised to adhere to their originally selected banks and schedule, as proven by past experience. AMCM will continue to maintain close communication and contact with banks involved to ensure that the entire process will be conducted smoothly.
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The Institute for Tourism Studies' Bachelor Degree Programme emphasises on the balance between theory and practice. Students are required to complete certain hours of practical tasks related to their specialisations every year. One of the tasks given to the Tourism Business Management students is to provide free guided tour to tourists and local residents. The activity, with the theme of "Tour around Macao with IFT Students", is organised by year two students of Tourism Business Management Degree Programme. With the assistance from the instructors, five different itineraries have been designed and each lasts about one hour and thirty minutes. This free guided tour service will be provided to all tourists and local residents on Saturday and Sunday, from 6 – 21 April. The main objectives of the activity: I. It allows the students to put what they have learnt about tourism into practice. The whole project, from itinerary design to time control to the actual tour guiding, is planned by the students themselves with assistance from instructors. By coordinating the activity, their communication skills can also be enhanced. II. To promote Macao to the tourists by offering the free guiding service at the city centre and tourist attractions. Residents will also be made aware of the importance of tourism to Macao. IFT is the only public higher education institution in Macao that cultivates talents for tourism and service industry. It endeavours to promote Macao through various activities and to leave a good impression to everyone who visits the place.
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Chief Executive Mr Chui Sai On is scheduled to leave for Boao in Hainan Province, to attend the opening ceremony of the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference 2013 on 7 April. Mr Chui will lead a government delegation to Boao on 6 to 8 Apri, to this year's conference which is themed "Asia Seeking Development for All: Reconstructing, Responsibility and Cooperation". The President, Mr Xi Jinping, is scheduled to attend and deliver a keynote speech. The Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Macao Special Administrative Region, Mr Hu Zhengyue, was invited to join the delegation The Chief-of-Cabinet of the Office of the Chief Executive, Mr Tam Chon Weng, the Secretary-General of the Executive Council, Ms O Lam, and the Director of the Government Information Bureau, Mr Chan Chi Ping, will also be members of the delegation. The Secretary for Administration and Justice, Ms Florinda Chan, will be Acting Chief Executive while Mr Chui is away.
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Due to the maintenance works of CEM for the distribution network on 9th April 2013 （Tuesday）, please be informed that the office hours of Ocean Garden Post Office, located at Rua do Jardim, Jardins do Oceano, "Azalea Court", Taipa, will be changed as below on that day. From 4:00pm to 7:00pm We apologize for any inconvenience caused.
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The United Nations Human Rights Committee (the Committee) issued concluding observations on the Macao SAR's implementation of the relevant provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) today (March 28, 2013). The Macao SAR Government will continue to implement all the measures that protect human rights as always, devote to the implementation of the relevant provisions of the Covenant and carry out the spirit advocated by the Covenant. The Macao SAR delegation attended the meetings of the United Nations Human Rights Committee on March 18 and 19 and provided detailed replies to the questions raised by the Committee concerning the situation of the Macao SAR's implementation of the Covenant. The Committee expressed in its concluding observations that it was satisfied to have conducted a constructive exchange with the Macao SAR Government delegation. The Committee gave the Macao SAR Government credit for the measures adopted for and the efforts put into safeguarding human rights, including the accession to multiple international conventions related to the protection of human rights, for instance, the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Involvement of Children in Armed Conflict and the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the Sale of Children, Child Prostitution and Child Pornography, the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organised Crime, and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The Committee also complimented the Macao SAR Government on laying down laws in major scopes such as the protection of refugees, the combat against trafficking in persons, the assistance of youth offenders in correction and social integration, and so forth, including the formulation of Law no. 1/2004, the Regime of Recognition and Loss of Refugee Status, Law no. 2/2007, the Educational Supervision Regime for Young Offenders and Law no. 6/2008, the Combat against the Crime of Trafficking in Persons. The Macao SAR Government appreciates and respects the Committee's suggestions but has differences in the points of view on certain issues with the Committee. The Macao SAR Government will gradually implement the suggestions, which are practical and feasible and which conform to the Basic Law, the local law and the actual situation of the society. As regards the mention of the interpretation of the Basic Law in the concluding observations, the Macao SAR Government emphasizes that the Basic Law is the national law formulated by the National People's Congress; pursuant to the Constitution of the People's Republic of China and the provision of the Basic Law of the Macao SAR, the power of interpretation of the Basic Law belongs to the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress. What shall be emphasized is that the exercise of the relevant authority does not have any impact upon the Macao SAR's judicial independence, law or high degree of autonomy. Since the establishment of the Macao SAR, the Court of Final Appeal has never sought an interpretation of the provisions of the Basic Law from the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress in light of Article 143. The Macao SAR Government does not agree with the Committee's suggestion on withdrawing the reservation to Article 25(b) of the Covenant. In fact, the Covenant does not prohibit reservations. Pursuant to the provision of the 1969 Vienna Convention on the Law of Treaties, if a treaty does not prohibit reservations, a State may formulate a reservation, provided that it does not contravene the object and the purpose of the treaty. When the Central Government of the People's Republic of China delivered a note to the depositary of the Covenant regarding the continuous application of the Covenant in the Macao SAR in 1999, four declarations which conformed to the rules of international law were made pursuant to the relevant provisions of the Basic Law and the legal status and actual situation of the Macao SAR. The election system of the Macao SAR shall be formulated in accordance with the Basic law and the Decision made by the Standing Committee of National People's Congress in 2012. The current election system accords to the actual situation of the Macao SAR without any contravention to the provisions of the Covenant which are applicable to the Macao SAR. As for the Committee's suggestion to the Macao SAR Government concerning the establishment of a brand new and independent human rights monitoring institution, the Macao SAR Government deems it unnecessary. Human rights are already fully protected by the independent judicial power enjoyed by the Macao SAR and by the current specific institutions, such as the Commission Against Corruption, the Office for Personal Data Protection, the relevant committees or organisations established in different areas, including the combat against trafficking in persons, police affairs, the rights and interests of women, and so forth as well as the Legal Aid Regime, which will enter into force on April 1. After the revision of the Organisational Law of the Commission Against Corruption in 2012, apart from maintaining its functions of the "Ombudsman", the competence of the Commission in relation to the promotion of the protection of human rights, freedoms, guarantees and legitimate interests has also been reinforced. As the head of the Macao SAR, the Chief Executive represents the Macao SAR, therefore the independence of the Commission Against Corruption will not be affected by the nomination of the Commissioner Against Corruption by the Chief Executive. The Macao SAR has a sound and independent judicial system. Should a resident hold that his/her fundamental rights are violated, he/she can directly invoke the provisions of the Covenant and institute legal proceedings in the courts. In case he/she is under financial distress, he/she may apply for legal aid so as to guarantee that he/she can obtain or uphold his/her lawful rights and interests via legal proceedings. In relation to the cases of refusal of entry of journalists mentioned by the Committee, the Macao SAR Government reiterates that journalists fully enjoy press freedom and interview freedom in Macao and are free to enter and leave Macao and interview locally, without the need to notify or register at any official department. The refusal of entry to Macao of the persons concerned had nothing to do with their identities as journalists but due to the fact that the security authority considered that the visitors, who were ready to enter Macao, might disturb the internal security of the Macao SAR, thus the authority could refuse their entry according to laws. Under the protection of the Basic Law and the Press Law, the media of the Macao SAR fully enjoys freedom of press, freedom of speech and autonomy in editing and interviewing. In fact, the media industry of the Macao SAR continues to thrive after the handover. The number of media units or the discussion of issues in the areas of politics, economy, society, people's livelihood and so forth of the Macao SAR are constantly increasing. As regards the Committee's recommendation that the Macao SAR Government should consider decriminalising defamation, the Macao SAR Government holds that the law should protect different rights. As the right to reputation is a major personal right, it is necessary to prevent the infringement of reputation through criminal law and punish the offender accordingly. Regarding the Committee's concern about the freedom of assembly, it should be pointed out that, Article 27 of the Basic law stipulates that Macao residents are entitled to the freedom of assembly, and the right to public assembly and that to demonstration are protected under Law no. 2/93/M. All Macao residents have the right to assemble under peaceful circumstances and in the absence of weapons, without the need for any pre-authorisation. In relation to the Committee's concern about the practice of employing non-resident workers in the absence of formal contracts, the Macao SAR Government reiterates that, pursuant to Article 23 of Law no. 21/2009, the Law for the Employment of Non-Resident Workers, the employment contracts with non-resident workers shall be concluded in writing.
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Mr. Grant R. Bowie, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of MGM China Holdings Limited was invited to deliver a talk about "A Preferred Future for Macao – with so many opportunities available, which ones should we pick to create our desired Macao of the future?" at IFT on 27 March. More than 100 IFT students and staff attended the talk and had a lively discussion and interaction with the speaker. Mr. Grant Bowie shared his ideas on the topic during the talk and encouraged the youth to have deep thinking on how their own choices and contribution can create a desired Macao, not only for the local community, but also for the tourists visiting Macao. He indicated that nowadays, there are many opportunities ahead for local young people. But still, they need to be really cautious when making decision to grab the opportunities because the opportunities can determine success or failure of their life and career, while their success or failure connect to the future of Macao. He encouraged the students to invest in education and to continue their studies whenever there is a chance, learning applied skills in addition to professional knowledge during their studies; to have a clear picture of what they want to be; to be brave to voice out what they prefer Macao to be and actively engaged in the progress of the Macao's transformation to a desired city. To let students to be aware of the up-to-date requirement and development of the industry, IFT often invites prominent guest speakers from the industry to deliver talks to the students. Lao, a student majors in Culinary Arts Management, said he enjoyed the talks delivered by those successful figures. The valuable experience and the elements paving their path to success shared by the speakers help him to make a clear aim for his future and the plan to achieve the aim; and surely give him inspirations and motivation for his studies.
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To continually enhance the capacity of the relevant government bodies and the operators in handling emergencies of fuel farm fire in Macau International Airport, the "Fuel Farm Fire Exercise 2013" was carried out in the airport today (28 March 2013) simulating a fire incident taking place at the airport fuel farm and the fire fighting by the involved organizations in the emergency. The exercise lasted for half an hour and was deemed smooth. The fire drill started at 14:45. The scenario was of a fire incident taking place in the top of a tank in the airport fuel farm due to static electricity. Nam Kwong Petroleum & Chemicals Co. Ltd., the fuel provider, immediately activated the safety systems according to their internal emergency plan and moved away the vehicles parked in the area. Simultaneously, they informed all concerned entities involved in the emergency in accordance with the Airport Emergency Plan. The airport fire fighting station delivered their trucks to the spot at once to stop the fire. Although there were no injuries, the commander-in-chief asked for additional support from the Fire Services Headquarters, considering the high critical degree of the incident area and ordered to evacuate the staff in the vicinity of the incident. In the fire drill, the communication between all involved personnel, the delivery of fire fighting facilities to the spot, and the evacuation of staff were all carried out in a smooth manner. With the assessment by all the involved entities that there were no more potential threats, the exercise was concluded. The whole process went through half an hour, with the participation of 50 personnel from the Unitary Police, the Public Security Police Force, the Fire Services, the Civil Aviation Authority of Macao SAR, the Administration of Airports Ltd., Nam Kwong Petroleum & Chemicals Co. Ltd. and the Macau Security Company Ltd. The Facilitation and Security Committee holds meetings in the beginning of every year to discuss the exercise plan for Macau International Airport for the year. The objective of doing exercises is to test and assess the effectiveness of the Airport Emergency Plan and the capacity of the participating entities on command and control, coordination, communication, resource allocation and so on when facing emergencies. The other exercises which will be carried out this year include the full scale emergency exercise, the aviation security exercise and the heliport exercise.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that total merchandise export for February 2013 amounted to MOP577 million, down by 12% year-on-year; value of domestic exports (MOP106 million) and re-exports (MOP471 million) decreased by 38% and 2% respectively. Total merchandise import reached MOP5.83 billion, up by 3% year-on-year. Merchandise trade deficit amounted to MOP5.26 billion for February 2013. From January to February 2013, total value of merchandise export increased by 24% year-on-year to MOP1.58 billion, of which value of re-exports (MOP1.30 billion) increased by 44%, but that of domestic exports (MOP286 million) decreased by 23%; meanwhile, total value of merchandise import increased by 17% to MOP13.02 billion. Merchandise trade deficit for the first two months of 2013 widened to MOP11.44 billion. In the first two months of 2013, merchandise export to Hong Kong (MOP977 million) and Mainland China (MOP200 million) increased by 48% and 23% respectively year-on-year, while export to the USA (MOP74 million) and the EU (MOP46 million) decreased by 9% and 18% respectively. Exports of Non-textiles (MOP1.44 billion) in the first two months of 2013 expanded by 32% year-on-year, of which exports of Diamond & diamond jewellery (MOP207 million) and Clocks & watches (MOP169 million) surged by 85% and 143% respectively; meanwhile, exports of Textiles & garments (MOP146 million) decreased by 19%, of which exports of Non-knitted or non-crocheted garments (MOP74 million) and Knitted or crocheted garments (MOP57 million) declined by 6% and 31% respectively. In the first two months of 2013, merchandise import originated in Mainland China (MOP4.15 billion) and the EU (MOP3.42 billion) increased by 22% and 25% respectively year-on-year. Imports of Consumer goods rose by 23% to MOP8.42 billion, with imports of Food & beverages (MOP1.66 billion), Gold jewellery (MOP1.54 billion), Watches (MOP972 million) and Motor cars & motorcycles (MOP554 million) increasing by 12%, 93%, 31% and 34% respectively. External merchandise trade reached MOP14.61 billion in the first two months of 2013, up by 17% compared with MOP12.43 billion a year earlier.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the unemployment rate (1.9%) and the underemployment rate (0.6%) for December 2012-February 2013 held stable as the previous period (November 2012-January 2013). Total labour force was 357,200 and the labour force participation rate stood at 72.0%. Total employment was 350,600, a decrease of 900 from the previous period. Analysed by industry, employment in Retail Trade and Hotels & Similar Activities saw increase, while that in Construction registered a decrease. Number of the unemployed was similar to the previous period, at 6,700; fresh labour force entrants searching for their first job accounted for 7.0% of the total unemployed, down by 4.6 percentage points. In comparison with December 2011-February 2012, the labour force participation rate went down by 1.2 percentage points; both the unemployment rate and the underemployment rate decreased by 0.2 percentage points.
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