News

The Monetary Authority of Macao announced today that the preliminary estimate of Macao SAR's foreign exchange reserves amounted to MOP132.8 billion (USD16.62 billion) at the end of September 2012. The reserves fell by 0.4% or MOP0.5 billion from the revised value of MOP133.2 billion (USD16.68 billion) for the previous month. Macao SAR's foreign exchange reserves at end-September 2012 represented 19 times the currency in circulation or 154.7% of Pataca M2 at end-August 2012. The trade-weighted effective exchange rate index for the pataca, a gauge of the domestic currency's exchange rates against the currencies of Macao's major trading partners, fell by 1.30 points month-to-month but rose by 2.15 points year-on-year to 97.55 in September 2012. For enquiry, please contact:
Research and Statistics Department, Monetary Authority of Macao (Tel: 83952532; Fax: 28353042)
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As the one of the major highlights of the 17th Macao International Trade and Investment Fair (17th MIF), the "International Trade and Investment Forum 2012" will be held at 2:45pm on 18 October 2012, in Sicily Room of the Venetian Macao-Resort-Hotel. Ministerial and high ranking government officials from overseas and leading businesspeople will be delivering speeches under the theme of "Regional Co-operation to Explore New Opportunities". The "International Trade and Investment Forum 2012" is jointly organised by China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT), Investment Promotion Agency of the Ministry of Commerce, P.R.C., All-China Federation of Industry and Commerce, Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) and Macao Chamber of Commerce. A high-ranking official from the Macao SAR will deliver the opening speech, and a number of renowned guests from Mainland China, Macao and Portuguese-speaking countries will also give speeches. Mr. Zhang Wei, Vice Chairman of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade; Mr. Zheng Yuewen, Vice Chairman of All-China General of Industry & Commerce; Mr. Ma Iao Lai, President of Macao Chamber of Commerce; Mr. Kenneth Viagem Marizane, Vice Minister of Industry and Trade, Mozambique; Mr. António Almeida Henriques, Secretary of State, Assistant to the Minister and of Economy and Regional Development, Portugal; Ms. Veneranda M. Lemos Martins, Secretary of State for Support and Promotion of the Private Sector, Timor-Leste will deliver keynote speeches at the Forum. In addition, Mr. João Marques da Cruz, President of Portuguese Chinese Chamber of Commerce & Industry, Mr. Dácio Gomyde Pretoni, President of Brazil Macau-China Institute for the Cultural, Scientific and Technological Development as well as Mr. Zheng Gang, Chairman of China Hasan International Holdings Co. Ltd. will also share their insights with the audience. Speakers will focus on facilitation of regional co-operation under globalisation, and seizing new business opportunities in the constantly changing market situation. In addition, some topics will be elaborated by speakers, namely the trade and investment cooperation between Portugal and China and the Asia Pacific region and the role of Macao as a bridge to explore new opportunities; introduction of potential economic co-operation sectors in Brazil, especially the vast business opportunities presented by the 2014 World Cup Tournament. Furthermore, information of a large-scale commercial project based in Luanda of Angola will be illustrated by the project developer from Mainland China. The "International Trade and Investment Forum" is one of the most important forums of MIF every year. Everyone from local and overseas business communities and other sectors are welcome to join. Places are limited. Simultaneous interpretation services are available in Putonghua, Cantonese, Portuguese and English. For further enquiries and registration, please contact Ms. Kuan in IPIM's Research and Information Division on 8798 9127, Fax: 2872 8208 or 2859 0309 or email ipimpcom@ipim.gov.mo
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The Macao SAR Government Official Gazette has published the name list of the recipient of the Macao Science and Technology Awards. The University of Macau (UM) received numerous prizes in the Natural Science Award category, the Technology Invention Award category and the Science and Technology Progress Award category. The project, Time-Frequency Analysis of Transient Signals and Algorithm: Harmonic and Clifford Analysis of Signals, by UM professor Qian Tao, received the sole first prize in the Natural Science Award category. This year the Macao Science and Technology Awards received a total of fifty-six applications. According to the Regulations on Rewards for the Development of Science and Technology, there is one first prize, two second prizes and three third prizes in the Natural Science Award category, and UM receive three prizes in this category, including the sole first prize for the project, Time-Frequency Analysis of Transient Signals and Algorithm: Harmonic and Clifford Analysis of Signals, by UM professor Qian Tao, a second prize for the project, Association Study of Pharmacology and Quality in Chinese Medicine, by Wang Yitao, Lee Ming Yuen, Chen Xiuping, Chen Meiwan and Lu Jinjian, and a third prize for the project, Investigation and Innovation in the General Purpose Computation based on GPU (GPGPU), by Wu Enhua, Wu Wen, Zhu Jian and Xu Tianchen. In the Technology Invention Award category, there are two second prizes and four third prizes. The project, Analog and Mixed-Signal Interfaces for a Ubiquitous Electronic World, by UM professors Rui Martins, U Seng Pan, Mak Pui In and Sin Sai Weng, received a second prize. The project, Three-Dimensional Pulse Width Modulation Techniques and Its Applications in Three-Phase Four-Wire Active Filters, by Wong Man Chung, Dai Ningyi and Lok Io Keong, and the project, Wireless UV Flame Detectors for Fire-safety Applications, by Tam Kam Weng, Sou Iam Keong and Ho Sut Kam, each received a third prize. In the Science and Technology Progress Award category, there are two second prizes and three third prizes. The project, Technologies and Applications of Portuguese-Chinese Machine Translation System, by Wong Fai, Dong Mingchui, Tang Chi Wai and Francisco de Oliveira, received a second prize. The project, The Analysis of Stability Problem and Loop Flow Problem in Macau Electric Network and Its Implementation, by Wong Chi Kong, Lou Chin Wang, Lam Sio Cheong, Dong Mingchui and Han Yingduo, and the project, The Technology for Creating a Portal for the Macao SAR Government and for Ensuring Data Safety, Timeliness, Consistency and Integrity and the Implementation Thereof, by Wong Chan Tang, Dong Mingchui, Lin dong, Leong Pok Man and Tou Chi Pio, each received a third prize.
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On 11 October 2012, the University of Macau (UM) held a Media Lunch Gathering with the Rector, in order to update local and overseas media in Macao on the latest development of UM. UM Rector Wei Zhao disclosed at the gathering that according to the latest plan, the new campus is expected to be put into operation next autumn, and after it begins operation, UM plans to adopt a series of measures, including establishing a large biochemical and medical instrument centre, opening campus facilities to the public, launching postgraduate programmes that mainly target working people, etc., in order to serve the local community in more areas and continue to fulfil it social responsibility. When asked about the relocation plan, Rector Wei Zhao said that starting April 2013 UM will arrange for some staff to move to the new campus first for post-delivery work, including sorting-out, quality inspection, testing, furnishing, equipment installation, etc., and the new campus is expected to be put into operation next autumn. He added that after the new campus is put into operation, UM plans to adopt a series of new measures for the benefit of Macao residents. These measures will include: using part of the current campus to serve as a centre for continuing education for Macao residents, establishing a large biochemical and medical instrument centre on the new campus and sharing advanced equipment with other sister educational institutions and hospitals in Macao to improve the wellness of Macao residents; opening campus facilities such as the library, the cultural centre, the sports centre, etc. to the public while ensuring that staff and students' work and study are not affected, in order to realize sharing of resources and to enhance ties between the university and the general public. There will be some increase in the new campus budget from the current 1.3 billion patacas, but the increase mostly arises from natural cost, including the cost of hiring additional teaching staff to meet the needs of increasing students, and the cost of relocation and purchasing large laboratory equipment and furniture during the initial stage of the new campus. But Rector Wei Zhao stressed that the increased cost will not be passed on to students. He noted that the current cost of providing education to every student at UM is approximately between MOP 150,000 and MOP 160,000, lower than that of universities in Macao's neighboring regions, including Hong Kong (approximately HKD 300,000) and Tsinghua University in Beijing (RMB 400,000). When asked if UM will increase tuition fees, Wei Zhao stressed that UM will not increase tuition fees because of the increased cost of the new campus, tuition fees will only be increased due to inflation and the increase will not exceed the inflation rate. Rector Wei Zhao also promised that UM will not let any student accepted by UM give up his or her chance to receive education simply because he or she can't afford the tuition fees. Rector Wei Zhao said that the complete set of advanced facilities on the new campus will help UM to further improve its academic strength. He added that in the future UM plans to establish a faculty of arts, faculty of creative design and faculty of health sciences, and will also launch practical master's programmes in a variety of fields, such as law, education, society and management, which will mainly target Macao adults, in order to improve Macao residents' quality and competitiveness and to meet the Macao society's demand for high-calibre people.
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This year the University of Macau (UM) will confer honorary doctorates on four distinguished individuals, namely Dr. Arden Lee Bement, Jr., Master Hsing Yun, 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. The conferment ceremony will be held at UM's Cultural Centre on 14 November, Wednesday. Higher degrees will also be awarded at the ceremony. Dr. Chui Sai On, chief executive of Macao SAR and chancellor of UM, will preside over the ceremony. Dr. Arden Lee Bement, Jr. will be the recipient of the Degree of Doctor of Science honoris causa. Dr. Bement has made outstanding contributions in his many important leadership roles in industry, academia, and government agencies. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering. He conducted materials research in support of advanced engineering conversion technologies. He successively served as professor of nuclear materials at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), member of the U.S.-U.S.S.R. Bilateral Exchange Program in MHD, and head of the MIT Fusion Technology Program. Of his prominent leadership roles in U.S. government agencies, three stand out prominently: Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, Director of the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and Director of the National Science Foundation. Under his directorship, the National Science Foundation opened its office in Beijing, China, showing his initiative in promoting science and technology collaboration between China and the U.S. Master Hsing Yun will be the recipient of the Degree of Doctor of Humanities honoris causa. Master Hsing Yun is the founder of the Fo Guang Shan Buddhist Order. He has established himself as an influential world religious and philanthropic figure, with a large following worldwide. He has built more than two hundred temples all over the world. he dedicates his whole life to the study of the philosophy of religion. He is well-read and prolific in writing. He is committed to the advancement of philanthropic, educational and cultural causes. He has founded a large number of educational institutions both at home and abroad, including fine art galleries, twenty-six libraries and publishers, twelve bookstores, over fifty Chinese schools, and sixteenTsung Lin Buddhist colleges. Master Hsing Yun has received numerous honours. In 1978, he became the first Buddhist monk to receive an honorary doctorate from the Eastern University in the U.S. In 1992, he was elected honorary president of the World Fellowship of Buddhists. In 1995, he received the Buddhist Treasure Prize from the Indian Buddhist Congregation. Dr. Ambrose So Shu Fai will be the recipient of the Degree of Doctor of Social Sciences honoris causa. Dr So is CEO of SJM Holdings Limited, Director of Sociedade de Jogos de Macau, S.A., member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Honorary Consul of Portugal in the Hong Kong SAR, member of the Economic Development Council and of the Cultural Consultative Council of the Macao SAR government, and President of the board of directors of the Macau Military Club. Through his various capacities, Dr. So has made significant contributions to the economic and cultural exchange and cooperation among Macao, Hong Kong, China and Portugal, especially in the fostering of Macao's role as a platform between China and the Portuguese-speaking countries. Dr. So has over 35 years of experience in Macao's gaming and tourism industry, during which he has made relentless efforts for the professionalism, regulation and diversification of Macao's gaming industry. A devoted artist in Chinese calligraphy, his work has been the subject of numerous solo exhibitions. In 2009 he was awarded the Medal of Cultural Merit by the Macao SAR government. Prof. Andrew Chi-Chih Yao will be the recipient of the Degree of Doctor of Science honoris causa. A renowned computer scientist, Prof. Yao is recognized as one of the world's leading scholars in computation theory. Prof. Yao has made significant and original contributions to the niche scientific areas of data organization, the complexity-based theory of pseudorandom number generation, cryptography, communication complexity, quantum teleportation as well as computation. Prof. Yao is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences. He has published nearly one hundred academic papers which covered almost every aspect of the computation complexity theory. He was awarded the Turing Award in 2000 by the world's leading Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), which made him the first and the only overseas Chinese computer scientist to date to have won this award since its founding. Before he received the Turing Award, he had already earned many prestigious awards, including the Polya Prize by the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, and the first Donald E. Knuth Prize which is named after Knuth, the master of the analysis of algorithms. Prof. Yao has taught at a number of prestigious universities in the United States. He is currently teaching at Tsinghua University in Beijing and the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that there were 95 hotels and guest-houses operating in 2011, an increase of 4 year-on-year, including 63 hotels and 32 guest-houses. Upon opening of several large-scale hotels, number of persons engaged reached 33,052, up by 24% from 2010, with 26,024 working in 5-star hotels (79% of total); meanwhile, the 32 guest-houses had 168 workers, up by 7% year-on-year. Subsequent to continuous increase in hotel guests, receipts of the hotel sector soared by 32% year-on-year to MOP 18.83 billion in 2011. Analysed by item, receipts from Room Sales (MOP 8.46 billion), Food & Beverages (MOP 4.06 billion) and Rental of Space (MOP 3.05 billion) increased by 29%, 31% and 37% respectively year-on-year. Expenditure of the hotel sector amounted to MOP 15.48 billion, up by 35% year-on-year. Analysed by item, Operating Expenses (MOP 7.25 billion) and Compensation of Employees (MOP 5.83 billion) increased by 32% and 39% respectively. Gross Value Added that measures the sectoral contribution to the economy reached MOP 9.33 billion, up by 31% from 2010. With successive completion of large-scale hotels, Gross Fixed Capital Formation surged by 240% year-on-year to MOP 16.59 billion.
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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 13 October – 3 November. 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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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that Value of Industrial Production & Other Receipts of Macao increased by 4.4% year-on-year to MOP9.31 billion in 2011, the first rebound since 2006, mainly spurred by the impetus of Manufacture of Food Products & Beverages and Manufacture of Other Non-metallic Mineral Products. Intermediate Consumption (MOP6.14 billion) rose by 4.6% year-on-year; Gross Value Added that measures the sectoral contribution to the economy (MOP3.17 billion) increased by 3.9%, while Gross Fixed Capital Formation (MOP482 million) dropped by 43.8%. In 2011, there were 900 establishments operating in industrial production, a decrease of 11 over 2010, of which 894 were Manufacturing establishments. Total number of persons engaged decreased by 852 year-on-year to 13,828, with Compensation of Employees (MOP1.71 billion) rising by 6.0%. Analysed by industry, Value of Production of the Manufacturing sector (MOP6.29 billion) increased by 9.5% over 2010, with that of Manufacture of Food Products & Beverages (MOP1.07 billion) rising by 18.9% upon continuous rise in visitor arrivals. Due to notable increase in cement and concrete production, Value of Production of Manufacture of Other Non-metallic Mineral Products (MOP775 million) surged by 1.5 times year-on-year. On the other hand, sluggish demand from the European and US markets drove the Value of Production of Manufacture of Wearing Apparel (MOP1.40 billion), an export-oriented industry, down further by 18.6% year-on-year. Meanwhile, Intermediate Consumption (MOP4.83 billion) and Gross Value Added (MOP1.53 billion) of the Manufacturing sector increased by 11.2% and 4.4% respectively year-on-year, with Gross Value Added of Manufacture of Food Products & Beverages and Manufacture of Wearing Apparel were MOP424 and MOP270 million. On account of reduced electricity generation in 2011, Value of Production (MOP2.90 billion) and Intermediate Consumption (MOP1.29 billion) of the Electricity, Gas & Water Supply sector decreased by 6.2% and 14.7% respectively year-on-year, whereas Gross Value Added (MOP1.63 billion) went up by 2.9%. In 2011, the Industrial Survey covered all establishments engaging in activities under Manufacturing, Mining & Quarrying, and Electricity, Gas & Water Supply.
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Members of the public can again visit the front block and gardens of Government Headquarters at the Open Day, on 20 and 21 October between 9 am and 6 pm. The Public Security Police Band and students from the School of Music and School of Dance of the Macao Conservatory will perform for visitors during the two-day opening. There will also be guided tours of the first floor of the Headquarters and a photo exhibition of old Macao in the multi-purpose conference room. For more details, please browse www2.gcs.gov.mo/openday or www.gov.mo.
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In order to strengthen the role of Macao SAR as an economic and financial platform between China and Portuguese-speaking countries, the Monetary Authority of Macao (AMCM) has invited the central bank governors of various Portuguese-speaking countries to Macao for a Financial Forum with the theme: "Exploit the Platform Function of Macao in Promoting Economic and Financial Development between China and Portuguese Speaking Countries". The Forum will allow extensive communications about the theme. Meanwhile, to further reinforce Macao's role as a bridge, AMCM has also invited representatives from the Financial Services Offices of Shanghai and the Guangdong Provinces to the Forum for introducing the current developments and financial market conditions in those regions. The Forum will also introduce the economic and financial developments of participating countries. Central bank governors from Portugal, Mozambique, Cape Verde and East Timor, as well as the heads of the Financial Services Offices in Shanghai and Guangdong Provinces have signed up for the Forum. The above-mentioned Forum will be held on 10 October 2012 (Wednesday), from 2:00pm to 6:00pm at the Conference Center on the 2nd floor of Hotel Mandarin Oriental. Ms. Gao Yan, Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macao SAR and Mr. Feng Tie, Deputy Commissioner of the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Macao SAR will be the officiating guests of the Forum. More than 120 participants including representatives of local financial institutions, consuls or honorary consuls of Portuguese-speaking countries in Macao and representatives of relevant departments of the MSAR Government will also be present.
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