The “Central & Southern District Consumer Carnival” was officially launched yesterday, the chairman of the Industry and Commerce Federation of the Macau Central and Southern District, Lei Cheok Kuan, announced yesterday.
Lei made the remarks during a launching ceremony at Rotunda de Carlos da Maia (colloquially known as “Three Lamps” roundabout) yesterday, pointing out that the new consumer carnival has been launched to further extend the effectiveness of last year’s “Northern District Consumer Carnival”. This time, the carnival is aimed at stimulating consumption in the peninsula’s central and southern districts.
Lei noted that nearly 10,000 businesses in the central and south districts will participate in the carnival, which shows, he said, that businesses are facing a certain degree of pressure. Lei also said he hoped that the event can attract consumers to spend money in both districts and inject new vibrancy into the community.
The carnival will run through December 30, and consumers who use e-payments at designated merchants in the central and southern districts in Macau will have a chance to participate in a lucky draw, according to Lei, adding that there will be two street parties in October and November, as well as cultural performances and consumer reward lucky draws every weekend.
‘Citywide Consumer Rewards’ this month
On the sidelines of yesterday’s event, Economic and Technological Development Bureau (DSEDT) Director Tai Kin Ip told reporters that the government’s “Citywide Consumer Rewards” promotional activity will be launched as early as later this month.
Tai said the three-month activity will adopt the same mode as the previous “Weekend Consumer Rewards in the Northern District” from March 18 to August 4, where users will be able to take part in lucky draws for e-coupons after they spend at least 50 patacas at the participating businesses through e-payment on weekdays, but the coupons can only be used during weekends.
Tai said the consumer rewards programme’s early start aimed to meet the needs of the current business environment, with the budget for the whole programme totalling 102 million patacas. Tai also said he estimated that every pataca the government spends on the programme will generate consumer spending worth five patacas.
Tai also said that the turnover of the businesses that took part in the “Weekend Consumer Rewards in the Northern District” programme had increased by 10 to 30 percent during weekends and, at the same time, residents and tourists’ spending in the district had increased compared with the period before the launch of the programme.
Tai also called on merchants to launch concessionary measures at the same time so as to create a synergistic and overlapping effect to promote the consumption atmosphere.
Lei also said he was pleased with the arrangement, which he believed would bring renewed “vitality” to the participating businesses, and said he hoped that the government would consider extending the event to tourists as well, so that tourists would feel that Macau is a place worth spending money in, thus turning the promotional activity into a “mega event”.
Economic and Technological Development Bureau (DSEDT) Director Tai Kin Ip (left) and the chairman of the Industry and Commerce Federation of the Macau Central and Southern District, Lei Cheok Kuan, talk to reporters on the sideliness of a launching ceremony of the Central and Southern District Consumer Carnival at Rotunda de Carlos da Maia yesterday. – Photo combo: Ginnie Liang
