News

Members of the 'Consumer organizations city alliance', which include 22 consumer organizations in China, released a list of reports and surveys on the 2012 annual meeting in Nanjing earlier. Released reports include 'Attention to emergency call function in mobile phones in the Mainland', 'Replacing home use water heater magnesium anodes', and 'Quality and guarantee period of residential homes', etc. Members are called on to distribute press releases in regard to the mentioned reports to promote awareness of consumers. Members of the alliance state that emergency call function is not available in some of the foreign mobile phone brands in China and these foreign brands only allow users to call 911, 112, or other emergency numbers that are widely used in other countries. For mobile phones manufactured in China, users are normally connected to voicemail services even though emergency call function is enabled. Members of the alliance indicate that, according to the consumer protection regulations in the Mainland, mobile phone manufacturers are called on to secure the installation of emergency call function in mobile phones and ensure this function can be operated regularly. Foreign phone brand manufacturers should abide by the laws in China and respect the habit of consumers in China to use emergency numbers known in the region. Meanwhile, consumers are recommended to check whether this function is workable or not when purchasing mobile phones. Further, to prevent accidents arise from using water heater at home, consumer organizations remind consumers about the importance of replacing magnesium anodes in water heater to ensure consumers' safety. For the survey targeted at checking the quality of residential homes in the Mainland, result shows that water leaks appear in surfaces and walls of over 70 percent of both public and private constructions. Members of the alliance state that:
1. Constructors are responsible to keep consumers informed of the current guarantee regulations and period of residential homes;
2. Constructors should strictly abide by the regulations set up by related departments in regard to the guarantee period of residential homes, the contract of sales, and the agreement in the property management contract. Constructors should bear all responsible responsibilities and safeguard the legal rights of consumers;
3. Enforced monitoring should be carried out by the related departments in China to safeguard the legal rights of consumers.
…

In accordance with the objectives of the Committee for the Development of Conventions and Exhibitions to promote the image of Macao MICE industry and provide related information services more efficiently, Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) is responsible for following up on the setting up of the Macao MICE Portal. In the afternoon of 20 November, the Macao MICE Portal (www.mice.gov.mo) will be officially launched at Macao Business Support Centre. Officiating guests include Mr. Tam Pak Yuen, Secretary for Economy and Finance and President of the Committee for the Development of Conventions and Exhibitions, Mr. Sou Tim Peng, Director of Macao Economic Services and Secretary-General of the Committee for the Development of Conventions and Exhibitions, Mr. Jackson Chang, President of Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) and Convenor of the Working Group on the Development of External Co-operation of the Committee for the Development of Conventions and Exhibitions, Mr. U Kin Cho, Vice President of the Board of Directors of Macao Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Li Zhizhong, Chairperson of Macao Convention and Exhibition Association, Mr. Tony Lam, President of Macao Fair and Trade Association and Mr. Edmund Wong, Chairman of Association of Advertising Agents of Macau. Around 60 representatives from local industrial and business associations as well as the convention and exhibition industry will also attend the ceremony. It is hoped that the launch of the MICE portal will further promote the strengths of Macao's convention and exhibition industry, activities and facilities to local and overseas event organisers, industrial and business entrepreneur and business visitors. It also aims to provide greater facilitation in the search for related MICE information. Co-operation entities of the Macao MICE Portal include Macao Convention and Exhibition Association, Macao Fair and Trade Association and the Association of Advertising Agents of Macau. Currently, the Macao MICE Portal comprises of various columns including Event Promotion, Incentive Measures, Industry Information and MICE Guide. Contents will be constantly updated and enhanced in accordance with the market demands and development.
…

Under the provisions of Administrative Regulation nº 30/2011 and amended by Administrative Regulation nº 5/2012, the Macau Branch of Bank of China Limited and the Banco Nacional Ultramarino S.A. are authorized to issue additional Dragon Lunar Year Banknotes (Dragon notes). The procedure for the subsequent exchange of the banknotes commences with the online registration for selecting the date and bank for the conduct of the exchange. The online registration period has already ended at 6pm on 31 October. Arrangements for the Note Exchange process
Starting from 3 December 2012 till 31 January 2013, registered Macao residents can proceed to exchange for the Dragon notes in persons on the selected day and at the chosen bank during the bank's business hours. Each registered resident should bring along their ID card and the required cash to exchange for 15 Dragon notes issued by each Issuing Bank. The Dragon notes will be exchanged on random basis such that the serial number of the exchanged banknotes cannot be selected. To conduct inquiry of their registration details, registered residents can log onto the system of the Macau Branch of Bank of China Limited and that of the Banco Nacional Ultramarino S.A. via the webpage of the Monetary Authority of Macao (AMCM) (www.amcm.gov.mo). Appointment of representative to conduct the Note Exchange
If the registered residents cannot conduct the note exchange in persons during the exchange period, they can use the following two methods to appoint representatives to conduct note exchange on their behalf: 1. The appointed representative should present the original and signed copy of his/her ID card and those of the registered citizen that he/she represents to conduct the note exchange process; or 2. The registered resident fills in the representation authorization form that can be downloaded from the website of AMCM and has his / her signature verified by a private or public notary. Then the appointed representative will only need to present the duly filled and verified representation authorization form along with his / her own ID card to the bank when conducting the note exchange. Moreover, if the appointed representative needs to conduct the note exchange for the Dragon notes issued by the two Issuing Banks, then the representative should bring along two sets of the representation authorization forms.
…

Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that value of retail sales for the third quarter of 2012 totalled MOP 12.45 billion, up by 13% year-on-year. Retail sales of Watches, Clocks & Jewellery amounted to MOP 3.55 billion (28% of total), which was followed by retail sales of Goods in Department Stores (15%), Leather Goods (11%), Adults' Clothing (9%), Motor Vehicles (7%) and Goods in Supermarkets (7%). Value of retail sales for the third quarter of 2012 decreased by 3% compared with the revised figure (MOP 12.82 billion) of the second quarter, with marked decrease being observed in sales of Watches, Clocks & Jewellery (-14%) and Motor Vehicles (-12%); however, retail sales of Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles and Goods in Pharmacies increased by 16% and 13% respectively. In the first three quarters of 2012, value of retail sales totalled MOP 38.49 billion, an increase of 24% compared with MOP 30.95 billion from a year earlier. After removing the effect of price changes, volume of retail sales for the third quarter increased by 9% year-on-year, with notable increase in sales of Goods in Pharmacies (+18%), Goods in Supermarkets (+18%), Watches, Clocks & Jewellery (+12%) and Automotive Fuels (+12%). Volume of retail sales decreased by 1% quarter-to-quarter, of which sales of Watches, Clocks & Jewellery (-13%) and Motor Vehicles (-12%) saw significant decline; on the contrary, sales of Cosmetics & Sanitary Articles and Goods in Pharmacies increased by 14% and 12% respectively. In respect of the comments of the retailers, about 70% stated that sales volume in the third quarter increased or held stable over the previous quarter, up by 5 percentage points compared with those holding the same sentiment in the second quarter, while 30% reported decrease in sales volume. In terms of the retail prices, about 62% reported stable prices, 23% stated an increase and 15% stated a decrease. In comparison with the same quarter of 2011, about 76% expressed that the stock level was normal in the third quarter, while 11% indicated that the stock level was low. As regards business outlook for the fourth quarter, about 82% anticipate that sales volume will increase or remain stable from the second quarter, while 18% expect a decrease. Concurrently, about 69% predict stable retail prices, 26% expect an increase, while 5% predict a decrease in retail prices.
…

Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that total spending of visitors (excluding gaming expenses) amounted to MOP13.3 billion in the third quarter of 2012, up by 10% in comparison with MOP12.1 billion in the third quarter of 2011. Spending of overnight visitors totalled MOP11.3 billion and that of same-day visitors was MOP2.0 billion. In the third quarter of 2012, per-capita spending of visitors was MOP1,822, an increase of 12% from a year earlier. Per-capita spending of visitors from Mainland China was MOP2,302, with that of IVS visitors at MOP2,514; while spending of visitors from Singapore and Japan stood at MOP1,673 and MOP1,550 respectively. As regards per-capita spending of long-haul visitors, those from Australia, the US and the UK spent MOP1,167, MOP1,056 and MOP961 respectively. Per-capita non-shopping spending of visitors rose by 16% year-on-year to MOP952, of which expenses on Accommodation and Food & Beverage accounted for 48% and 37% respectively. Japanese visitors and Singaporean visitors had a relatively high per-capita non-shopping spending of MOP1,381 and MOP1,247 respectively. Per-capita shopping spending of visitors amounted to MOP869, went up by 7% year-on-year. Shopping items included Local Food Products (23%), Jewellery & Watches (19%), and Shoes, Handbags & Wallets (17%). Visitors from Mainland China had per-capita shopping spending of MOP1,304, with IVS visitors reaching MOP1,615. In addition, per-capita spending of overnight visitors increased by 13% year-on-year to MOP3,081, while that of same-day visitors decreased by 15% to MOP549. Per-capita spending of overnight and same-day Mainland visitors accounted for MOP3,974 and MOP666 respectively, and the respective spending of IVS visitors reached MOP4,411 and MOP1,003.
…

22 consumer organisations in China participated in the annual city alliance meeting in Nanjing on 12th November and a list of reports and surveys were released on the same day to suggest improvements for the related industries in mainland China. The first three reports released were 'Report on the safety condition of textile products in express hotels', 'Report on the safety condition of indoor environment of 100 city new homes', and 'Suggestions on consumer disputes arise from flight delays'. Participants at the meeting included cities like Macao, Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, and China Consumer News, etc. Each year, a meeting is held at each member city to report and share the works completed by the 22 members.
…

Organised by the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao S.A.R. Government and co-organised by the Printmaking Research Centre of Macao, the 1st Macao Printmaking Triennial is a grand international exchange event in the area of printmaking, featuring nearly 100 works by renowned printmakers from 11 counties and regions. These important hubs of printmaking creativity in Asia include Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macao, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and India. The exhibition opened on 17th November 2012 in the Old Court Building, located at Av. da Praia Grande, and runs until 17th February 2013. Present at the opening ceremony were the President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao SAR Government, Dr. Ung Vai Meng, Deputy Director of the Department of Education and Culture of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in Macao S.A.R., Zhang Xiaoguang, Deputy Director-General of the Department of General Affairs of the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Macao SAR, Shen Weizhong, Member of the Cultural Consultative Council of Macao, Mr. Carlos Marreiros, Director of the School of Arts at the Macao Polytechnic Institute, Ms. Hsu Hsui-Chu, Acting Vice President of the Cultural Affairs Bureau of the Macao SAR Government, Mr. Kent Ieong Chi Kin and Deputy Chief Editor of the Macao Daily News, Ms. Lio Chi Heng (representing the Director of the Macao Daily News). Macao was the first transit stop of Western missionaries coming from afar to China in the 15th Century. They not only introduced the first batch of exquisite Western copper-plate prints for missionary purposes but also the typographic press and lithography in succession. Macao was once a strategic port of the Maritime Silk Road, which can be attributable to the vigorous trade prompted by the flourishing printing business. A professional printmaking course has been offered in the School of the Arts of Macao Polytechnic Institute (formerly the Visual Arts Academy) since its establishment in the 1980s, which held two international printmaking exhibitions in Macao in 1992 and 2000. This year, the 1st Macau Printmaking Triennial, launched by the Cultural Affairs Bureau and curated by veteran local printmaker Wong Cheng Pou, seeks to give an overview of the newest aspects of contemporary printmaking in Asia. Printmaking organisations and educators from different countries have been invited to select and screen artists to represent their respective regions in the event. The wide variety of printmaking works chosen for this exhibition range from simplistic, explicit traditional woodblock prints to mainstream silk screen prints, copper-plate etchings, and innovative prints produced by sophisticated computers. Works on display also include special prints employing unique production methods. The Triennial is definitely a feast for the eyes - and not to be missed by printmaking and art aficionados! This year's event features four awards, including one Special Award, with a cash prize of 100,000 Patacas, and three Review Panel Special Awards, with cash prizes of 20,000 Patacas each. The panel of five judges included Professor Chen Yi, of the China Central Academy of Fine Arts in Beijing, Mr. Chu The-I, Director of the Kuandu Museum of Fine Arts, Taipei National University of the Arts, Japanese artist Takeshi Kanazawa, Chief Curator for Art and Special Projects of the Hong Kong Museum of Art, Mr. Tang Hoi Chiu, Hong Kong Leisure and Cultural Services Department, and Archt. Carlos Marreiros, member of the Cultural Consultative Council of Macao. The Special Award of the 1st Macao Printmaking Triennial goes to the Korean artist Kwak Nam Sin, whose work is titled "The Day when I was Blue". The three Review Panel Special Awards are presented to Chinese artist Wang Li Xing, and to Thai artists Tinnakorn Kasornsuwan and Vimonmarn Khanthachavana, for their works titled "Fresh Water Lake IV", "Home II" and "Pincushion in Hand 2005", respectively. At the Grand Opening, more than 60 printmakers from various places were present, symbolising an important milestone in the development of Macao's arts and their emergence in the global art arena.
…

The University of Macau's (UM) Ceremony for Conferment of Honorary Degrees and Higher Degrees 2012 was held today (16 November). Dr. Chui Sai On, chief executive of Macao SAR and chancellor of UM, presided over the ceremony and met with three honorary degree recipients. In his speech, Dr. Chui said that UM has made progress in soft and hard strengths, with rapid advancement in scientific research, and with the new development mode, UM should shoulder greater responsibility and become the backbone of Macao's cultural innovation and science and technology development. He said that the SAR government will continue to provide policy- and resource-wise support to UM in its future development. At the ceremony, UM conferred honorary doctorates upon Prof. Arden Lee Bement, Jr., Dr. Ambrose So Shu Fai and Prof. Andrew Chi-Chih Yao, in recognition of their outstanding contributions in the areas of research, culture and education. PhD degrees, master's degrees, postgraduate diplomas and certificates, and the Outstanding Academic Staff Award were also presented at the ceremony. UM Rector Wei Zhao congratulated honorary degree recipients and the 427 postgraduates. He said sports train people's mind and body while research helps people explore the unknown and challenge the limit. That's why Macao needs scientific research in. He said in recent years, thanks to UM's vigorous support of research, the university has made significant advances in scientific research, as evidenced by the numerous prestigious awards in science and technology. He thanked students, alumni and faculty for their concerted efforts and contributions. Prof. Andrew Chi-Chih Yao, representative of the honorary degree recipients, said in his speech that UM best exemplifies Macao's achievements in education. With a history of over thirty years, UM excels in teaching, research and community service. Under the leadership of Rector Wei Zhao, UM has evolved its own character and enjoys academic freedom. All this puts the university in good stead for realizing its goal of becoming a world-class university.
Prof. Mok Kai Meng, dean of the Honours College, highly commended Prof. Arden Lee Bement, Jr. in his citation. He said that over the years, Prof. Bement has led various significant programmes and activities, benefiting the world with his science and engineering contributions, from managing programmes in metallurgical research, nuclear structural materials, defense weapons technology, biomaterials, manufacturing technology, isotope power sources, to the design, fabrication and irradiation testing of advanced nuclear fuel elements, and application of competitive technologies. In academia, Prof. Bement has led teaching and research programmes to facilitate understanding, formulating and shaping of policy on critical issues in areas such as economics, agriculture, poverty, climate change, and energy sources for improving people's lives. He was the director of the United States National Science Foundation (NSF), leading the agency to advance in its mission of encouraging, identifying and funding the best ideas and most promising people for the benefit of the world. Prof. Jacky So, dean of the Faculty of Business Administration, highly commended the accomplishments of Dr. Ambrose So Shu Fai in his citation today. As he said, "Dr. So is a cultured man of action with a heart for his nation, and serves as a role model for others." Dr. So holds numerous important positions, including being a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Honorary Consul of the Republic of Portugal in Hong Kong SAR, and a member of the Economic Development Council and of the Cultural Consultative Council of the Macao SAR government. He works with relentless effort toward the sustainable development of Macao's economy, and is committed to advancing exchange and cooperation among Macao, Hong Kong, China and Portugal. Dr. So is currently Chief Executive Officer of SJM Holdings Limited. In 2008, he ushered Macao into the international financial market by planning and facilitating the Hong Kong stock exchange listing of SJM, Macao's only locally rooted gaming concessionaire. A gifted calligrapher, Dr. So is dedicated to the promotion and development of Chinese culture, and has organised many activities promoting cultural exchange over the years. Dr. So has been awarded the Medal of Merit - Culture by the Macau SAR government. Prof. Philip Chen, dean of the Faculty of Science and Technology, highly commended Prof. Andrew Chi-Chih Yao in his citation. He said that Prof. Yao has made many original and significant contributions to computer science, including laying concrete foundations for modern cryptology on which computational complexity is based, formulating the theory of communication complexity and the theory of pseudo-random number generation, and establishing a new paradigm for quantum computation, communication complexity and teleportation. In 2000 Prof. Yao was awarded the Turing Award by the US Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), becoming the first Chinese scientist to have won this prestigious award ever since its founding. Prof. Yao was under the tutelage of distinguished computer scientist Prof. Liu Chung Laung, who received his early education in Macao and who was also a recipient of an honorary doctorate from UM. The Most Venerable Master Hsing Yun, recipient of the Degree of Doctor of Humanities honoris causa, was not able to attend today's ceremony. Conferment of the honorary degree on Master Hsing Yun will be held separately. Prof. Hao Yufan, dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, highly commended Master Hsing Yun in his citation. He said that Master Hsing Yun is noted for his benevolent karma of advocating for Humanistic Buddhism. His Buddhism faith translates into deep compassion and compassion into philanthropic acts. He developed a system of the philosophy of Humanistic Buddhism that opens up wider study of Buddhist logic (Hetuvidya), purifies people's mind through sangha and performs philanthropic deeds for the needy. The manifestation of his compassion is secular rather than just ethereal, his Buddhist wisdom worldly rather than metaphysical, thus giving a new twist to the conventional understanding of Emptiness - the very heart of Buddhist doctrine. He tries to find the best of different faiths as the greatest denominator to bridge the differences, and construct a common religious discourse that can speak to every religion. The Humanistic Buddhism that Master Hsing Yun spent more than seven decades forging sprawls the entire Chinese-speaking communities all over the world. He has founded dozens of kindergartens, primary and secondary schools, sixteen Buddhist colleges, over fifty Chinese schools, and several universities. Towards the end, UM presented the Outstanding Academic Staff Award to Prof. Rose Lai Neng from the Faculty of Business Administration, Prof. Tong Io Cheng from the Faculty of Law, Prof. Zhang Meifang from the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Prof. Yuen Ka Veng from the Faculty of Science and Technology, and Prof. Li Shaoping from the Institute of Chinese Medical Sciences, in recognition of their contributions to education, research and society.
…

Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the 27 banks in Macao had a total of 5,317 employees at the end of the third quarter of 2012, up by 2.9% year-on-year. Analysed by occupation, 1,158 were directors and managers, up by 13.1% year-on-year; 2,347 were clerks, with 861 being bank tellers. In September 2012, average earnings (excluding bonuses and allowances) of full-time employees amounted to MOP21,150, up by 6.3% year-on-year. Average earnings of bank tellers stood at MOP12,330 and that of technicians and associate professionals was MOP18,230, up by 6.8% and 4.2% respectively year-on-year. At the end of the third quarter of 2012, the Banking Sector had 155 job vacancies, down by 8.3% year-on-year, with 82 vacancies for clerks, including 45 for bank tellers. In terms of recruitment prerequisites, 59.4% of the vacancies required working experience and 72.3% required tertiary education. Besides Cantonese, other preferred language skills were Mandarin (95.5%) and English (81.9%). In the third quarter of 2012, the Banking Sector hired 383 new employees and the employee recruitment rate (7.3%) decreased by 2.0 percentage points year-on-year. The employee turnover rate (5.7%) and the job vacancy rate (2.9%) increased slightly by 0.2 and 0.4 percentage point respectively, indicating that the mobility of human resources is stable.
…

Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that a total of 6,766 building units were purchased and sold at MOP26.93 billion in the third quarter of 2012 as per Stamp Duty record, down by 13.8% and 13.3% respectively quarter-to-quarter. Within the units purchased and sold, 4,475 were residential units sold at MOP19.75 billion, down by 19.4% and 15.6% quarter-to-quarter respectively, and Macao residents accounted for 88.2% of the transaction and 83.2% of the value. Residential units purchased and sold under MOP3,000,000 took up 45.9% and 25.5% cost MOP6,000,000 or over. Analysed by year of completion of the building, residential units completed in 2010 and after totalled 1,517 (33.9% of total), including 1,165 pre-sale units, and 1,451 residential units were completed in 1990-1999. As regards floor area of the unit, 2,345 residential units (52.4% of total) had an area of 50 to 99.9 square metres, and 28.2% were smaller than 50 square metres. The average price of all residential units amounted to MOP58,305 per square metre of usable area, up by 5.2% quarter-to-quarter; average price of those in the Macao Peninsula (MOP51,662), Taipa (MOP67,579) and Coloane (MOP81,928) increased by 8.9%, 1.2% and 4.8% respectively quarter-to-quarter. Analysed by year of completion of the building, average price of residential units completed in 1990-1999 was MOP45,593 per square metre, up by 9.0% quarter-to-quarter. Analysed by floor area, average price of residential units under 50 square metres increased by 8.0% quarter-to-quarter to MOP45,862 per square metre; the average price of those having 150 square metres and over dropped by 4.4% to MOP80,682 per square metre. In addition, the average price of office units increased by 3.1% quarter-to-quarter to MOP49,245 per square metre, and that of industrial units rose by 0.5% to MOP18,844 per square metre. In the first three quarters of 2012, number of building units purchased and sold decreased by 24.4% year-on-year to 18,203, yet total value increased by 5.4% to MOP69.69 billion. A total of 12,374 residential units were purchased and sold at MOP51.45 billion, down by 17.5% and 2.2% respectively year-on-year. In the third quarter of 2012, a total of 3,497 cases of real estate sale and purchase contracts were made, down by 1.0% quarter-to-quarter, and the number of units dropped by 5.3% to 4,127. Moreover, there were 2,619 cases of residential mortgage contracts signed, down slightly by 0.5% quarter-to-quarter. In the third quarter of 2012, gross floor area of buildings completed totalled 612,904 square metres, altogether providing 1,573 units (1,502 are residential units), 1,319 parking spaces for cars and 188 parking spaces for motorcycles. Gross floor area of buildings completed totalled 1,560,013 square metres in the first three quarters of 2012, providing 2,499 units (2,404 are residential units).
…