LRT law takes effect before train service starts

The new law regulating the future operation of the Light Rail Transit (LRT) system, according to which passengers violating LRT rules will face a fine of between 5,000 and 10,000 patacas, took effect today following its promulgation in the Official Gazette (BO) yesterday.The law took effect weeks before the LRT system is slated to start operating by the end of the year. The government has still to announce when the “light metro” trains (as they are known in Portuguese) will start to take

August 27, 2019 | BY admin

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Carrie Lam congratulates Ho on election

Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor has congratulated Ho Iat Seng on his election as Macau’s next chief executive on Sunday, voicing expectations of strengthening ties between the nation’s two special administrative regions.A statement by the Hong Kong government on Sunday quoted Lam as saying that Ho has been committed to serving Macau and making significant contributions.“In addition to his active participation in areas of social services such as education and culture,

August 27, 2019 | BY admin

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Much more freedom after return to motherland: Ho

Chief Executive-elect Ho Iat Seng said yesterday that Macau residents have been enjoying much more freedom after Macau’s return to the motherland in 1999 than when the city was still under Portuguese administration.Chief Executive-elect Ho Iat Seng waves to media workers at the end of yesterday’s press conference following his election as Macau’s third chief executive at the Macau East Asian Games Dome in Cotai. Photo: Maria Cheang Ut MengHo, 62, made the remarks in reply to

August 26, 2019 | BY admin

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Monitor lizard ‘falls from sky’, shocks passers-by

A lizard measuring 1.3 metres in length was found crawling in the street in San Kio district on Friday, after the reptile had apparently fallen from a building and smashed the windscreen of a car parked in the street, scaring passers-by.The incident occurred in Rua de Inácio Pessoa, where the monitor lizard was found on the ground. As the car was parked by the side of the road and had a broken windscreen on the spot, the lizard was believed to have fallen from a nearby building and landed on

August 26, 2019 | BY admin

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Delta bridge pushes up visitor numbers

There has been an influx of visitors since the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge (HZMB) opened in October last year, the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) has pointed out. According to a DSEC statement last week, visitor arrivals rose by 16.3 percent year-on-year to 3.5 million last month, with same-day visitors (1.81 million) surging 29.9 percent and overnight visitor (1.71 million) growing by 4.7 percent.In view of the increase of 5.4 percentage points in the proportion of same-day visitors to

August 26, 2019 | BY admin

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Recession rears its ugly head again

Macau is in a technical recession after gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 1.8 percent year-on-year in real terms in the second quarter and by 3.2 percent in the first quarter, according to figures released by the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) on Friday. It’s the first time since 2016 has the “R” word risen its ugly head again. A technical recession is usually identified when real GDP falls year-on-year for two successive quarters. Customarily, a recession is a situation when

August 26, 2019 | BY admin

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Liaison Office & CE congratulate Ho on election victory

The Central People’s Government Liaison Office in Macau and Chief Executive Fernando Chui Sai On issued separate statements yesterday to congratulate Ho Iat Seng on winning the chief executive election with 98 percent of the votes cast.According to the Liaison Office’s statement, the current government and the Electoral Affairs Commission for the Chief Executive Election smoothly and successfully organised yesterday’s election, demonstrating the principles of fairness, justice and

August 26, 2019 | BY admin

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Kai Fong urges Ho to focus on citizens’ retirement

Kai Fong Chairman-cum-Chief Executive Election Committee member Ng Siu Lai pointed out yesterday that as Macau is set to be an ageing society, she hoped that Chief Executive-elect Ho Iat Seng would pay attention to the quality of senior citizens’ retirement and expand the government’s social allowances to local people who live outside Macau elsewhere in the Greater Bay Area (GBA).The GBA comprises nine cities in Guangdong province as well as Hong Kong and Macau.The General Union of

August 26, 2019 | BY admin

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Retail sales drop in Q2

Both the value and volume of Macau’s retail sales dropped in the second quarter, with the sales value dropping by 0.8 percent to 17.86 billion patacas and the sales volume falling by 0.5 percent, the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) has announced. However, the second-quarter retail sales value was still the highest on record.Sales volume is the number of units sold within a reporting period.According to a DSEC statement on Friday, the value of retail sales of adults’ clothing dropped by

August 26, 2019 | BY admin

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HK man robs & attempts to rape boutique owner

The Judiciary Police (PJ) arrested a 43-year-old Hong Kong man on Friday for robbing valuables and cash from a fashion boutique and attempting to rape the female shop owner, a PJ spokesperson told a regular press conference on Saturday.According to the spokesperson, the valuables – including a camera, a purse and a mobile phone – as well as the cash robbed by the suspect were worth 24,600 patacas.The incident occurred on June 25. The suspect was brandishing a knife when he entered the

August 26, 2019 | BY admin

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Ho stays mum on paid maternity leave, citing status as CE candidate

Chief executive candidate Ho Iat Seng declined yesterday to comment on the government’s proposal to increase paid maternity leave from 56 to 70 days, even though he acknowledged that the proposal remains below the expectations of the Macau Women’s General Association (commonly known as Fu Luen), which had requested that the statutory paid maternity leave in the private sector be raised to 90 days – as in the public sector.Ho made the remarks during a visit to the association’s

August 23, 2019 | BY admin

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Da Vinci-inspired dance set to let imagination take flight

A dance theatre inspired by Leonardo da Vinci’s obsession with flying will take off this weekend, transporting the audience, children and adults alike, on a journey where dreams run wild and their imagination can fly high.The performance of “Flight”, filled with fantasy, sprinkled with imagination and dusted with magic – the basic ingredients of Spain’s Aracaladanza Dance Company’s productions – will take place tomorrow and on Sunday at the Macau Cultural Centre (CCM).“I like

August 23, 2019 | BY admin

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2G network services are history: CTM

CTM Network Services Vice President Declan Leong Pui Hong said that the 2G network service officially ended in Macau at midnight yesterday, according to government-owned broadcaster TDM.The TDM report did not reveal where Leong made the remarks.According to the report, Leong said yesterday that although the 2G network has exited the local market, its facilities and spectrum could still be used in developing the existing 4G network.CTM Network Services Vice President Declan Leong Pui Hong talks

August 23, 2019 | BY admin

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15 pct of Macau’s employees work for gaming sector: survey

Nearly 15 percent of Macau’s employees worked for the gaming sector in the second quarter of the year, according to data released by the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) yesterday.According to a DSEC statement, the number of full-time employees in the gaming sector rose by 2.8 percent year-on-year to 57,840 in the second quarter, accounting for 14.9.4 percent of Macau’s total employment of 387,200 at that time.Female employees made up 57.5 percent of the gaming industry workforce in the

August 23, 2019 | BY admin

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