News

Consumer Council released its latest 'Supermarket Price Survey' dated 15th November. In comparison with last month's record, price increases were mainly observed in cooking oil and canned foods this time. 'Amoy Lo Sui Marinade (450ml)' recorded the biggest price difference of 211 per cent. In the current survey, average prices of most surveyed cooking oil and canned foods samples had risen. Average prices of cooking oil recorded a slight increase of less than 1 per cent while those of canned foods had increased notably; price increases were mainly observed in canned foods imported from mainland China while prices of those imported from other countries remained relatively stable. In the latest specific price survey on canned foods, 'Ma Ling Premium Ham Luncheon Meat (340g)' had increased notably in price for about 20 per cent since last month, other canned foods from mainland China had also risen in prices for about 10 per cent. For rice price, slight increase or decrease were both observed in Thai rice brands. Notable price upsurges of almost 12 per cent were recorded in both 'Golden Rice King (10kg)', and 'Golden Earth (10kg)', price of 'Chewy Thai Hom Mali Rice (Fragrant Rice) (5kg)' had also increased by 10 per cent since last month's survey. '"Gum Ling Gi" Thai Hom Mali Rice (15kg)' recorded the most notable decrease in price of around 20 per cent. The 'Supermarket price information platform' available on Consumer Council's website allows consumers to check the top 10 products with most price differences, over 280 items were surveyed this month and 'Amoy Lo Sui Marinade (450ml)' listed number one on the list. Both 'Supermarket Price Survey' and specific price survey on canned foods are now available on the Council's website (www.consumer.gov.mo). Reports are also available free of charge at the offices of Consumer Council, IACM's Iao Hon and S. Domingos Markets, bookstores and libraries. Consumers may also access the resources through WAP channels on their mobile phones. For inquiries, please call 8988 9315.
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The result of the 17th International Postage Stamp Design Contest under the theme – Sharing Hope, organized by the Korea Post, was announced on 21st October. This year, a total of 93 designs were submitted and mailed through the Communications Museum. We would like to extend our congratulations to Cheong Pok Man, student and Wong Chan, a local designer, whose works won the Youth Category Special Award and an Honorable Mention in the General Category respectively. The Communications Museum will continue to work hard on promoting this international activity in order to enhance international cultural exchange, as well as to encourage stamp collection. Designs of Macao participants are going to display at the Communications Museum from December 2011 and visitors are welcome to join us. Information
Tel: 28718063 / 28718570; Fax: 28718018
Website: http://macao.communications.museum
E-mail: info@macao.communications.museum
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In order to encourage philatelic collection and promote appreciation for the stamps of Macao, the Communications Museum is organizing a stamp poll – "My Favourite Stamps of Macao, 2011". All stamp lovers are invited to vote for their favourite stamps and souvenir sheets issued by Macao Post between January and October 2011. All MSAR residents above 6 years old are welcomed to participate. The Regulations and Voting Form can be obtained at Communications Museum or downloaded from the museum website. E-voting can also be done at http://macao.communications.museum . Every participant with a valid vote will enter the lucky draw automatically. Prizes include:
( Please find the attached file) Vote for your favourite stamps of Macao! Information
Tel: 853- 2871 8063 / 2871 8570
Fax: 853- 2871 8018 Email: info@macao.communications.museum
Web: http://macao.communications.museum
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Christmas and New Year is fast approaching. Starting from 1st December 2011, Communications Museum will organize a series of special activities and many beautiful Christmas decorations fills in the Museum. The Macao stamps of 2011 and Christmas stamps from all over the world will be projected on Large Stamp Projection. New Festive background images will be added to the Personal Picture Postcard and Greenscreen Studio. At the Make a Pose area, you can become Santa Claus by taking photos at his paper-board costume that fills with happy laughter around the Museum. All Family visitors are welcome to join the workshops and science demonstrations which will take place at specified times and dates. A new scientific demonstration "Resonance" will be introduced. The hands-on workshop "LED's Changing Looks" will encourage visitors to make a unique decorative lamp with LED and ping-pong balls, while the workshop of "Pop Up Christmas Card" will require visitors to create a trendy Christmas Card with festive decorations. The time schedules and information on/for both workshops can be found in our promotion leaflet. The Communications Museum invites you to join with us in this Christmas and New Year. Information
Tel: 28718063 / 28718570; Fax: 28718018
Website: http://macao.communications.museum
E-mail: info@macao.communications.museum
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that total spending (excluding gaming expenses) of visitors reached MOP 12.1 billion in the third quarter of 2011, up by 25% in comparison with MOP 9.7 billion from a year earlier; per-capita spending of visitors amounted to MOP 1,633, an increase of 7% compared with MOP 1,529 in the third quarter of 2010. Analyzed by place of residence, per-capita spending of Mainland visitors was MOP 2,026, and that of visitors from Japan at MOP 1,492; Southeast Asia at MOP 1,420; Taiwan, China at MOP 1,199; and Hong Kong at MOP 962. Per-capita spending of tourists (overnight visitors) increased by 6% year-on-year to MOP 2,716 and that of same-day visitors went up by 11% to MOP 647. Per-capita spending of overnight and same-day Mainland visitors topped at MOP 3,390 and MOP 823 respectively. In the third quarter of 2011, per-capita non-shopping spending of visitors amounted to MOP 823, up by 15% compared with MOP 718 from a year earlier, of which expenses on Accommodation and Food & Beverage accounted for 46% and 36% respectively. Per-capita non-shopping spending of visitors from Oceania took the lead at MOP 1,440 and that of overnight visitors from Oceania reached MOP 2,457. Per-capita shopping spending of visitors was similar to the third quarter of 2010, at MOP 810, with Local Food Products (22%), Jewellery & Watches (22%) and Clothing (18%) being the more popular shopping items. Mainland visitors had the highest per-capita shopping spending of MOP 1,233 and that of overnight Mainland visitors reached MOP 1,836. The average length of stay of visitors was identical to the third quarter of 2010, at 1.0 day. Average length of stay of overnight visitors increased by 0.1 day to 1.9 days, while that of same-day visitors held stable at 0.2 day. Total spending and per-capita spending of visitors for the third quarter of 2011 were extrapolated from 47,300 effective questionnaires collected; besides, data for the third quarter of 2010 have been re-compiled accordingly to facilitate direct comparison.
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According to the statistics released today by the Monetary Authority of Macao, the proportion of international business in the local banking sector dropped slightly in the third quarter of 2011. At end-September 2011, the share of international assets in total banking assets decreased to 86.1% from 86.9% at end-June 2011, while the share of international liabilities in total banking liabilities also dropped marginally to 80.3% from 80.4%. Foreign currencies remained as the dominant denomination in international banking transactions. At end-September 2011, the shares of Pataca (MOP) in total international assets and total international liabilities were 0.3% and 3.5% respectively. Hong Kong Dollar (HKD) and Other Foreign Currencies (OFCs) accounted for 41.2% and 58.5% of total international assets as well as 44.0% and 52.5% of total international liabilities respectively. International Banking Assets
At end-September 2011, total international assets dropped marginally by 0.3% from three months earlier but grew by 21.7% year-on-year to MOP538.0 billion (USD67.0 billion). Within this total, external assets and local assets in foreign currencies expanded by 14.7% and 48.9% from a year earlier to MOP403.6 billion and MOP134.3 billion respectively. As a major component of international assets, external loans & deposits decreased by 2.6% quarter-to-quarter but increased year-on-year by 17.0% to MOP378.5 billion. In particular, loans to overseas non-bank customers fell notably by 6.7% from the previous quarter. International Banking Liabilities
Meanwhile, total international liabilities edged up by 0.5% quarter-to-quarter or 25.6% from a year earlier to MOP501.7 billion (USD62.5 billion). Of this total, external liabilities and local liabilities in foreign currencies grew year-on-year by 27.2% and 23.8% to MOP269.5 billion and MOP232.2 billion respectively. Foreign currency deposits held by residents continued to form a major component of international liabilities. This type of deposits grew by 22.9% to MOP217.0 billion at end-September 2011 from MOP176.6 billion a year earlier. Overseas interbank liabilities, on the other hand, fell by 4.6% from the previous quarter. Breakdown of External Banking Assets and Liabilities by Region
The majority of external assets and liabilities were related to the regions of Asia and Europe. At end-September 2011, claims on Hong Kong and Mainland China occupied respectively 37.5% and 19.2% of total external assets, while claims on Portugal and Luxembourg took up 11.7% and 1.6% correspondingly. On external liabilities, Hong Kong and Mainland China occupied 44.1% and 20.8% of the total respectively while France and Portugal took up respective shares of 6.2% and 5.3%. The compilation of International Banking Statistics follows the methodology advocated by the Bank for International Settlements in order to facilitate Macao SAR's participation in the "Locational International Banking Statistics" project of the international organisation. For enquiry, please contact:
Research and Statistics Department, Monetary Authority of Macao
(Tel：83952532; Fax：28353042)
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Federation Internationale de L'Automobile Deputy President Mr. Graham Stoker is visiting the Macau Grand Prix for the first time this year. Mr. Stoker met with Macau Grand Prix Committee Co-Ordinator Engineer Joao Manuel Costa Antunes, Deputy Co-Ordinator Davina Chu, Automobile General Association Macao-China President of the General Assembly Mr. Charles Lo and President Mr. Chong Coc Veng. Engineer Costa Antunes briefed Mr. Stoker on the long and illustrious history of the event, and brought him up to date on the programme for this weekend. Following a tour of the Grand Prix area and the facilities, Mr. Stoker was impressed by what he saw, and commented that the event was very exciting and well-organised, and compared well with other major motorsport events. Mr. Stoker will present the FIA Formula 3 Intercontinental Cup trophy to the winner of the "SJM" Formula 3 Grand Prix on Sunday.
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Following the publication of the article "Rutter's 'last-chance' bid for bike record" on page C11 of the South China Morning Post dated November 19, 2011, the Macau Grand Prix Committee wishes to clarify the following: •The Macau Grand Prix Committee has not made any comment or statement regarding the matter referred to in the article •All consultants employed by the Macau Grand Prix Committee are awarded yearly contracts on an annual basis, and this has been the practice for several decades. Contracts are awarded following each Macau Grand Prix for the following year.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service (DSEC) indicated that the 25 banks in Macao had a total of 5,165 employees at the end of the third quarter of 2011, up by 7.8% year-on-year. Analyzed by occupation, 2,356 were clerks, with 831 being bank tellers, up by 6.8% and 4.7% respectively year-on-year; technicians and associate professionals totalled 1,450, an increase of 10.9%. In September 2011, average earnings (excluding bonuses and allowances) of full-time employees amounted to MOP19,900, up by 5.7% year-on-year. Average earnings of directors and managers stood at MOP40,760, up by 3.8% year-on-year, and that of bank tellers increased by 6.5% to MOP11,540. At the end of the third quarter of 2011, number of job vacancies of the Banking Sector totalled 169, an increase of 16.6% year-on-year; vacancies for clerks stood at 90, with 42 for bank tellers. In terms of recruitment prerequisites, 57.4% of the vacancies required working experience, and 71.0% required tertiary education. Besides Cantonese, other preferred language skills were Mandarin (95.3%) and English (82.8%). The Banking Sector hired 470 new employees in the third quarter of 2011, and the employee recruitment rate surged by 2.3 percentage points year-on-year to 9.3%. The employee turnover rate rose by 0.3 percentage point year-on-year to 5.5%, while the job vacancy rate decreased by 0.5 percentage point to 2.5%.
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Information from the Statistics and Census Service indicated that the Composite CPI (112.12) for October 2011 increased by 6.71% year-on-year. The increment was attributable to rising charges for meals bought away from home and dearer prices of gasoline. For the 12 months ended October 2011, the average Composite CPI increased by 5.34% from the previous period; the CPI-A and CPI-B rose by 5.01% and 5.52% respectively. In comparison with October 2010, significant increase was observed in the price index of Miscellaneous Goods & Services (+10.03%); Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (+9.75%); and Transport (+9.23%) on account of dearer prices of gasoline, gold jewellery, fresh fish and fresh pork, as well as rising charges for meals bought away from home. On the contrary, price index of Communication decreased by 14.00% year-on-year. The CPI-A (111.32) and CPI-B (112.47) for October 2011 increased by 6.42% and 6.93% respectively. The Composite CPI for October 2011 increased by 0.58% month-to-month, of which the price index of Clothing & Footwear rose by 2.08% upon new arrival of men and women's clothings. However, price index of Recreation & Culture and Transport decreased by 0.55% and 0.33% respectively. The CPI-A and CPI-B increased by 0.59% and 0.56% respectively month-to-month. The average Composite CPI for the first ten months of 2011 increased by 5.62% year-on-year; the CPI-A and CPI-B rose by 5.28% and 5.81% respectively. The Composite CPI, with base year April 2008-March 2009, reflects the impact of price changes on the general population. The CPI-A relates to about 50% of the households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP6,000 to MOP18,999. The CPI-B relates to about 30% of the households, which have an average monthly expenditure of MOP19,000 to MOP34,999.
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