News

Consumer Council handled almost 3,800 cases in the first half of this year.760 cases were complaints and almost 3,000 cases were inquiry, the rest of 51 cases were suggestions of consumers. Among the over 700 complaint cases, 122 cases were about telecommunication services. The number of cases regarding fees charged for various telecommunication services and arguments on contract terms has dropped by almost 30 percent comparing to 2011's figures whereas the number of cases regarding telecommunication service providers' service quality has increased. A total of 97 complaint cases for telecommunications products were received in the first half year, half of the cases received were about quality of mobile phones and after-sales services of telecommunications products, and tourists' complaints amounted to 60 percent of the complaint cases received in this category. Under this category, consumer disputes arise mainly due to the differences between the operations of local market and that in mainland China, and the definition and scope of warranty service of mobile phones in the two regions. Consumer Council suggests mobile phone retailers to give detailed explanation to consumers when they purchase mobile phones. Meanwhile, only 9 complaint cases on mobile phones have been received, which had reduced by 70 percent comparing to the previous year. The Council will continue to update its website with the latest suggested retail prices of mobile phones for inbound tourists' reference. Other categories which recorded increase in the number of cases mainly included clothing & apparel, sporting goods, as well as service charges and services of banks under the financial services category. The Council will provide adequate information to consumers by releasing researches and consumer alerts to enhance consumers' own protection on consumer rights. In the first half year of 2012, the Council also handled 2,972 inquiry cases, which had increased by 20 percent than the number of the previous year. A detailed report on the cases received by the Council is covered in the latest issue no. 228 of Consumer Report.
The current Consumer Report also features articles on Consumers International and other activities of the Council and other mainland consumer organizations.
Consumer Report is now available free of charge at the office of Consumer Council (Rua Inácio Baptista, Nº 6-6A Edficio Seaview Garden R/C), and the service counter of Consumer Council at Macao SAR Government Service Centre (Rua Nova da Areia Preta, Nº52), Public Information Centre at Vicky Plaza, libraries and bookstores. Consumers may also access the resources online on the Council's official website (http://www.consumer.gov.mo). For enquiries, please call 8988 9315.
…

24th Macau International Fireworks Display Contest staged its première fireworks display tonight, featuring the wonderful performance from the Korean and Thailand teams and attracted a great number of citizens and visitors to enjoy. Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of the Macau Special Administrative Region, Cheong U, Secretary-General of World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), Taleb Rifai, Deputy Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Macau Special Administrative Region, Feng Tie, Director of Department of Culture and Education of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macau Special Administrative Region, Liu Xiao Hang and Director of Macau Government Tourist Office, João Manuel Costa Antunes attended the Opening Ceremony of Macau International Fireworks Display Contest at the Macau Tower Outdoor Plaza. 24th Macau International Fireworks Display Contest is held at the Macau Tower shorefront from today until October 1. Among the show days, October 1 is China's National Day, on which the contest will feature the fireworks teams from Italy and Mainland China. The 10 participating teams this year are (according to the latest contest order) Korea; Thailand; Taiwan, China; Australia; Portugal; France; Japan; United States; Italy and Mainland China. Each participating team is requested again this year to complement their display with music to enthrall the audience with a light and sound spectacular. To enhance the enjoyment, the organizer has installed sound systems at the Macau Tower Outdoor Plaza and its waterfront, as well as the Macau Tower Street seaside and the front square of Kun Iam Statue on Ave. Dr Sun Yat-Sen so that the public can enjoy synchronized music to the spectacular displays. Spectators can listen to live music of the fireworks displays through TDM - Radio Macau's Chinese Channel live broadcast at FM100.7. MGTO continues its cooperation with Companhia de Telecomunicações de Macau S.A.R.L. (CTM) to jointly present the "Macau International Fireworks Display Contest SMS Game" again this year in order to foster citizens' participation in the event. During the contest period, CTM will send out text messages to their mobile subscribers and introduce the game, in addition to promoting the SMS game on the MGTO and CTM websites. Macau citizens can send a text message to CTM through their mobile to vote for their favorite team after each night of fireworks display. Citizens who have voted for the most popular team on that night are eligible for the lucky draw which will grant one winner with two sets of reservoir stand tickets for the 59th Macau Grand Prix (Saturday and Sunday) and souvenir. The 5 fireworks teams who get the most SMS votes will be awarded with "The People's Choice" certificates and souvenirs. Nevertheless, the audiences' voting result will not affect the jury's decision on the fireworks display contest. MGTO will also post web banners on CTM's website to enhance promotion efficiency. MGTO continues to join hand with the General Union of Neighbors Association of Macau to present the "Fireworks Carnival 2012" at the area next to Macau Tower in order to add more fun and color to the fireworks display nights. In order to enhance spectators' enjoyment of the contest and to enrich the performance elements of the fireworks, MGTO will raise the subsidy given to the participating teams for fireworks materials by 25%, i.e. up to USD25,000, starting this year, while also increasing the correspondent support for fireworks materials delivery expense. Furthermore, to celebrate the silver anniversary of Macau International Fireworks Display Contest next year, MGTO will organize the Trophy Design Contest, which will not only foster participation and a deeper sense of involvement among the public but also inspire creativity among local design talents.
…

The Chief Executive, Mr Chui Sai On, today sent a letter to inform the Central Government that the MSAR Government was ready to provide help with disaster relief works in Yunnan.
The Government Spokesman Office today released a statement which said that Mr Chui was very concerned with the multiple earthquakes that hit Yunnan, killing some 60 people.
According to the statement, Mr Chui said in the letter that the Macao people were very concerned about the victims and rescue works in the quake zone, and that he had conveyed condolences on the casualties and damage to properties of the residents.
Mr Chui said the MSAR Government would actively co-ordinate and fully supports relief works.
Two quakes measuring 5.7 and 5.6 on the Richter scale hit an area near Yiliang in Yunnan and Weining county in Guizhou province, southwestern China, at 11:19 a.m. and 12:16 p.m. Friday (7 September), respectively.
…

The working group on food prices released its latest specific price survey on rice. Survey result showed that prices of the 16 surveyed products remained stable. Survey data is now available on Consumer Council's website (www.consumer.gov.mo) and in the Council's 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' iPhone and Android apps. The working group on food prices collected prices of 16 brands of rice from 22 retail outlets on 3rd September. A general price difference of less than 10 percent was recorded; 'Golden Elephant Brand Premium Jasmine Rice/8kg', which was sold at $119.9 to $143.0, recorded the biggest price difference of 19.27 percent. In comparison with July's survey result, 8 out of the 16 surveyed rice brands recorded no change in price, 7 brands recorded general price increases or decreases of less than 5 percent, and 1 brand recorded no data. The biggest change in price was recorded in 'Golden Elephant Brand Premium Jasmine Rice/8kg', which observed a 9.8 percent price decrease in two retail outlets. The specific price survey on rice is now available on Consumer Council's website (www.consumer.gov.mo) and in the Council's 'Supermarket Price Information Platform' iPhone and Android apps.
…

In the first half-year of 2012, a total of 311 applications for temporary residency for managerial personnel, technical and professional qualification holders were received by the Macao Trade and Investment Promotion Institute (IPIM) (an increase of 91 compared with the same period last year), 54 applications for major investment and major investment plans (an increase of 21 compared with the same period last year), representing 85% and 15% of the total of 365 new applications in the first half-year of 2012. Approved cases for managerial personnel, technical and professional qualification holders amounted to 192 (a decrease of 33 compared with the same period last year), approved applications for major investment and major investment plans totalled 6 (an increase of 1 compared with the same period last year). In accordance with the Administrative Regulation No. 7/2007, temporary residency applications for fixed asset purchases have been suspended since 4 April 2007. There were over 4,000 applications lodged before the closing date of the policy and are still being processed. Therefore, there were no new residency applications during the first half-year of 2012 for fixed assets purchases while all of the 16 already approved cases were lodged before 4 April 2007. Statistics of Investment Residency Applications and the Cases and Number of Beneficiaries in the First Half-Year of 2012
(* Please find the attached file) For further enquiries on the residency application guidelines, please contact IPIM by visiting the website: www.ipim.gov.mo, email: gjfr@ipim.gov.mo, tel: 28712055 or fax: 28713950. Applicants may also visit the website and enquire about the progress of their residency application status online.
…

According to statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, broad money supply increased at a faster pace in July. As total loans grew faster than deposits, the overall loan-to-deposit ratio of the banking sector rose from a month earlier. Money supply Currency in circulation and demand deposits rose 0.6% and 4.2% respectively. M1 thus increased 3.5% from one month earlier. Concurrently, quasi-monetary liabilities grew 2.8%. The sum of these two items, i.e. M2, grew 2.9% to MOP330.8 billion. On an annual basis, M1 and M2 rose 6.9% and 20.7% respectively. The share of Pataca (MOP) in M2 stood at 25.7%, down 0.4 percentage points over a month ago or 0.5 percentage points from a year earlier. The share of Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) in M2 was 55.0%, up 1.0 percentage point month-to-month or 0.8 percentage points year-on-year. Deposits Resident deposits grew 3.0% from the preceding month to MOP323.7 billion. Of which, MOP deposits, HKD deposits and other foreign currency deposits increased at respective rates of 1.3%, 4.7% and 0.1%. Non-resident deposits grew 1.1% to MOP127.1 billion while public sector deposits with the banking sector increased 2.7% to MOP40.4 billion. As a result, total deposits with the banking sector rose 2.5% from a month earlier to MOP491.2 billion. The shares of MOP and HKD in total deposits were 21.2% and 45.5% respectively. Loans Domestic loans to the private sector increased 3.8% on a monthly basis to MOP186.5 billion. Among which, MOP50.3 billion was MOP-denominated and MOP117.4 billion was denominated in HKD, representing 26.9% and 62.9% of the total respectively. On the other hand, external loans rose 5.8% to MOP213.1 billion; of which, loans denominated in MOP and HKD accounted for 0.6% (MOP1.2 billion) and 24.6% (MOP52.5 billion) respectively. Loan-to-deposit ratios As domestic loans to the private sector grew faster than resident deposits, the loan-to-deposit ratio for the resident sector at end-July rose 0.4 percentage points month-to-month to 51.2%. The ratio for both the resident and non-resident sectors was 81.4%, up 1.9 percentage points from end-June.
…

The 24th Macau International Fireworks Display Contest will take place at the sea area in front of the Macau Tower during September 8th and October 1st. Due to technical reasons, Foti International Fireworks Pty Ltd. from Australia will be withdrawn from the program and replaced by another Australian fireworks company Infinity Pyrotechnic. The program will also be revised. The newly joined Australian team will come on stage earlier as on September 15th, while the US team's fireworks display will be postponed to September 29th. The latest fireworks program is available at: http://www.macautourism.gov.mo/documents/img/24th_Fireworks_Program.jpg
…

Institute for Tourism Studies is an institute emphasising on both theoretical and practical learning. Students can choose to perform the half year internship programme in Macao or overseas organisations which are related to their specialisations, so as to technically apply what they have learned during classes to actual work environment. It is hoped that students can keep up with the market needs when they are still in school and get ready for their future work life. Besides studies, IFT always encourage and support students to join more public activities like sports, cultural, language, art, creativity and social related activities etc., maintaining their mental and physical well-being. In the academic year of 2011/12, IFT students had participated in various extra-curricular activities and they had achieved some outstanding results in some games:
2012 Macao University Volleyball Championship – the Champion in both Women and Man Category;
2011/12 University Student Swimming Championship - 100m Breaststroke Men, 200m Breaststroke, Men 4x100m Freestyle Relay Men, 50m Butterfly Men and 50m Backstroke - the Champion; 50m Freestyle Men - the 1 st Runner-up;
2012 Macao University Bowling Championship - the Champion and the 1 st Runner-up;
2011 Macao University Snooker Championship - the Champion;
Macau Open Taekwondo Championship - the 1 st Runner-up;
Students had also performed excellently at the 2012 Macau International Dragon Boat Races. Other than sports activities, students also enthusiastically engaged and performed very well in other activities like Galaxy Macao Cup - the 4th National Conditions Education Contest, the 1st Macao-wide Business Knowledge Competition, The 9th Macao Inter - Tertiary Debate Competition etc.. IFT offers various type of extra-curricular activities for students from time to time, for instance, jazz dance, step aerobics, Portuguese folk dance, painting, dragon boat, sketching, photography taking, fencing, volleyball, taekwondo, choir, English/Mandarin debate, Portuguese, Everyday Mandarin for foreigners. IFT hopes that students can utilise their spare time and effectively manage their time and work, participate in more extra-curricular activities to get in touch with more new people and new things and to broaden their view and their networking, these are all the essential elements tourism professionals should possess.
…

Accident investigation is an important aspect of work in aviation safety. To enhance the professional knowledge and the skills of the aviation accident investigators, the "ICAO Regional Accident Investigation Workshop, Asia and Pacific Regions (AIG Workshop)" which is hosted by the Civil Aviation Authority of Macao SAR (AACM) is held from 04 to 05 September 2012 in Macao. More than 100 delegates from the aeronautical authorities and the investigation bureau from the Asia and Pacific Region, big aircraft and engine manufacturers in the world, international organizations and Macao's aviation operators are taking part in the workshop for the objective of exchanging and sharing with each other their experience in accident investigation, their latest development and technique in the relevant field. In addition, about half of the workshop delegates will continue to take part in the "Second Meeting of the Asia Pacific Regional Aviation Safety Team – Accident Investigation Ad hoc Working Group (2nd Ad hoc Working Group Meeting)" which will be held on 06 and 07 September 2012 to review the implementation of the yearly work plan and discuss how to further enhance regional cooperation. The workshop and the meeting, with duration of 4 days, are held in the convention facilities of the Macao Science Centre. The opening session of the workshop was conducted at 09:00 this morning (04 September 2012) and was officiated by the President of AACM, Mr. Chan Weng Hong and the Regional Officer, Flight Safety, International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), Mr. Amal Hewawasam. In his welcome address, Mr. Chan Weng Hong emphasized that safety is the first priority in aviation. AACM puts focused attention to develop and administer their work in the field of accident investigation and is determined to improve the work in legislation and the formulation of procedures. Mr. Chan Weng Hong said that through hosting the workshop in Macao, it is possible to allow more local investigators and industry people to exchange views and opinions with, learn the investigation techniques and the good experiences from the experts in other places. In his opening remarks, Mr. Amal Hewawasam expressed that ICAO wishes to enhance the professional knowledge and the skills of the investigators in the Asia and Pacific Region through sustainable training and requests the member states and administrations to increase cooperation in the Region. In the two-day workshop, 20 representatives from 13 different organizations, including 2 investigators from AACM, will make a total of 22 presentations which cover topics on difficulties encountered during investigation, manufacturer investigation process, sea search operations, setting up of an accident investigation unit, safety data sharing and protection, and case study. The two AACM investigators will share with the other delegates in detail the setting up of the Authority's Accident Prevention and Investigation Unit and the setting up of the Authority's voluntary incident reporting system. In the aspect of aviation accident investigation, Macao did not devise relevant legislation in the past. ICAO also gave their recommendation for legislation in the field of accident investigation when they carried out their audit on Macao's safety oversight work in 2009. For this reason, AACM established an internal cross-departmental accident investigation task force in 2010. An important task to be accomplished by this task force is to study and draft the "Aircraft Accident and Incident Investigation and Aviation Safety Information Protection Law (AIG Law)". The draft law was already approved in the general discussions of the Legislative Assembly and will be reviewed by the Third Permanent Committee of the Assembly in their detailed discussions in October this year. The law is expected to be effective in 2012. Apart from defining the responsibilities of investigation, the law also establishes the principles for establishing the confidential and non-punitive operation for the collection of safety information from the industry. In addition to formulating the law, AACM is also working on a voluntary incident reporting system for the purpose of collecting safety information, which is named "Macao Confidential Aviation Reporting System (MACCARES)". This system aims at encouraging industry people to report to the Authority any possible factors that may contribute to an incident in their daily operation, so that corrective measures can be taken to prevent the incident from occurring. The MACCARES will be launched after the implementation of the AIG Law. To learn about the factors leading to an accident through investigation can help to reduce the possibility of accident occurrence. Therefore, aeronautical authorities, safety oversight bureau and accident investigation bureau in different places often put focused attention on staff training and the exchange with other places. The ICAO AIG Workshop is the eighth of its series to have been held. Every year, the workshop is able to attract more than 100 investigators and industry people to take part. The participants are often enthusiastic to learn about the latest development in the relevant field in other places and share with each other their latest technique and experiences. To facilitate the delegates of the 2nd Ad hoc Working Group Meeting to host their discussions following the conclusion of the workshop, being a member administration of the Group, AACM will host the meeting in the same convention facilities. The 2nd Ad hoc Working Group will review the implementation of their yearly work plan and discuss among themselves the agenda items of independence of investigation, investigator training, investigation cooperation, voluntary and non-punitive incident reporting, accident and incident database and so on. The Ad hoc Working Group was set up following the discussions of the 48th Conference of Directors-General of Civil Aviation, Asia and Pacific Regions in 2011. The objective of the Ad hoc Working Group, which meets twice every year, is to review the accident investigation systems that have been developed in the Asia and Pacific Region and identify interventions, and look for policies and procedures for improvement through a coordinated effort, with a view to effectively reduce the regional aviation accident risk and enhance the skills of the investigators in the Region. The AIG Workshop has a participation of more than 100 attendees who come from 39 countries, administrations or organizations, which include the aeronautical authorities and the accident investigation bureau from Australia, Bangladesh, Cambodia, mainland China, Hong Kong China, Macao China, France, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, New Zealand, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Singapore and Thailand; (international organizations) ICAO and its subsidiary "Cooperative Operational Safety and Continuing Airworthiness Programme – South Asia", and International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations; (aircraft manufacturers) Airbus and Boeing; (engine and parts manufacturers) Pratt & Whitney and Rolls Royce plc; (service provider of sea search operations) ACSA from France and PAN-Communication from China; (Macao's aviation operators) CAM-Macau International Airport Co. Ltd., Administration of Airports Ltd., Menzies Macau Airport Services Ltd., Macau Business Aviation Centre, Air Macau Co. Ltd., East Asia Airlines Ltd., Jet Asia Ltd., Macau Jet International Co. Ltd. and Sky Tech Aircraft Engineering Ltd. The 2nd Ad hoc Working Group Meeting will have a participation of more than 50 attendees.
…

With the objective of increasing the understanding of the public accounting system of the EU, specifically the standards of the International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS), the Financial Services Bureau is going to organise a five-day seminar on "International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) and National Government Accounting in the EU", that will take place on September 10th to 14th in the Auditorium of the "Finanças" Building located on Avenida da Praia Grande, n.º 575-585, basement, from 5 pm to 7 pm. Integrated in the 2nd EU-Macao Co-operation Programme in the Legal Field, this seminar will feature as its keynote speaker Professor Rowan Harrison Jones, Professor of Public Sector Accounting, Birmingham Business School, University of Birmingham, UK and co-founder of Comparative International Governmental Accounting Research Network. The seminar will be conducted in English, with simultaneous translation into Cantonese. During the five daily sessions, the event will analyse different aspects of implementing the standards of IPSAS in the budgetary management based on a cash-basis or on an accrual-basis; the following topics will be discussed: 1) Current status of International Public Sector Accounting Standards (IPSAS) in the EU; 2) Business accounting standards and government accounting standards; 3) The nature of IPSAS; 4) Accounting and budgeting in the national governments of France, Germany, UK and US; 5) The Eurozone crisis and IPSAS. The 2nd EU-Macao Co-operation Programme in the Legal Field, which incorporates this seminar, has as its main objective the "Consolidation of the Macao Legal System" and will take place until December 2013. The execution of this Programme is coordinated by the Law Reform and International Law Bureau, with the participation of several other MSAR's entities and public departments, namely the Legal and Judicial Training Centre, the Legal Affairs Bureau, the Economic Services, the Financial Services Bureau and the Institute of European Studies of Macao.
…