Vehicle imports drop 52.1 pct in Jan-April

Macau’s imports of motor vehicles – cars and scooters – dropped by 52.1 percent year-on-year to 434 million patacas in the first four months of the year, the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) announced yesterday. Imports of mobile phones fell by 54.7 percent year-on-year to 1.6 billion patacas. Imports of gold jewellery dropped by 24.3 percent to 1.79 billion patacas. Imports of watches went down by 37.1 percent to 1.4 billion patacas. Construction material imports decreased

June 1, 2016 | BY admin

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4 trees illegally removed in Fai Chi Kei: police

The Judiciary Police (PJ) are investigating the illegal removal of four trees in Fai Chi Kei, PJ spokesman Ho Chan Nam said yesterday. Announcing the case during a regular press briefing at the PJ headquarters, Ho said the four trees planted by the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau (IACM) in Rua Nova do Patane were worth about 52,000 patacas. According to Ho, IACM officials told the police on Monday that the four-metre tall trees had been dug up and removed. He also said that during

June 1, 2016 | BY admin

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Hotel guests rise 11.5 pct in April

Macau’s 106 hotels and inns recorded 917,000 guests in April, an increase of 11.5 percent year-on-year, the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) announced yesterday. Mainlanders accounted for 66.5 percent and 12.5 percent of all guests respectively. While the number of guests from the mainland grew 16.7 percent year-on-year, the number of those from Hong Kong fell 8.2 percent. Guests’ average length of stay dropped by 0.1 night year-on-year to 1.3 nights. Please read the full

June 1, 2016 | BY admin

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Union urges govt to consider delivery drivers when planning bus lanes

Macau Federation of Transportation President Tong Chak Sam urged the government yesterday to consider the interests of delivery drivers when planning the city’s public bus lanes. The union, an affiliate of the Macau Federation of Trade Unions (commonly known as Gung Luen), held a press conference at Gung Luen’s headquarters in Areia Preta.The press conference was organised in response to some groups’ request for more non-local drivers. The union proposed that rather than importing

June 1, 2016 | BY admin

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Govt vows to check whether transfer of phone bets is illegal

Secretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong Vai Tac said yesterday the government will check whether local junket operators breach the law when transferring telephone bets to their VIP rooms operating outside the city. The policy secretary also said the government’s clear stance was that telephone betting in local casinos is illegal. Leong made the remarks after attending a Q&A session in the legislature’s hemicycle when asked by reporters about a recent online message by

June 1, 2016 | BY admin

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Disabled make up only 0.2 pct of public sector staff: official

At the end of last year, there were only 73 disabled people, or around 0.2 percent of Macau’s over 30,000 public sector workers, Social Welfare Bureau (IAS) President Celeste Vong Yim Mui said yesterday.Responding to legislator-cum-educator Chan Hong’s remarks during a Q&A session in the legislature that it was “rather difficult” for Macau’s disabled people to get a job in the public sector, Vong said most of the 73 disabled worked as “service assistants”.However, responding

June 1, 2016 | BY admin

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Construction quality worse than 15 years ago: Rosario

Secretary for Transport and Public Works Raimundo do Rosario said yesterday that the quality of the city’s private and public construction projects was “worse than 15 years ago”, adding that both the constructors and the government were responsible for the deterioration.  The outspoken policy secretary made the remarks during a Q&A session in the legislature’s hemicycle after several lawmakers complained about “serious” quality problems found in a string of public

May 31, 2016 | BY admin

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Man cheats victim out of HK$3 million: police

A 31-year-old unemployed local man cheated another local man out of HK$3 million in 2013, a Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesperson said yesterday.Speaking during a regular press briefing, the spokesperson said that in May 2013 the suspect told the victim that a junket VIP room he was “working for” had an investment opportunity open for its staff, which would pay 1.2 percent interest per month.The spokesperson said that the police found that the VIP room the suspect claimed to be working for had

May 31, 2016 | BY admin

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Bus lane to operate daily from July

Transport Bureau (DSAT) Traffic Planning and Construction Department head Kuong Vai Cheok said yesterday that a special public bus lane connecting Barra and Lam Mau Tong in Fai Chi Kei will be used daily from July.Kuong made the announcement after attending a meeting of the government-appointed Traffic Affairs Council at the bureau.Earlier this month the bureau started a trial run of the special lane for public buses during peak hours from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. and from 4.p.m. to 7 p.m. on

May 31, 2016 | BY admin

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GDP shrinks 13.3 pct in Q1

Macau’s gross domestic product (GDP) shrank by 13.3 percent year-on-year in real terms in the first quarter, the Statistics and Census Bureau (DSEC) said in a statement yesterday. The bureau attributed the decrease in the city’s economic output mainly to “the continuous decline in exports of services and decrease in investment.”According to the statement, external demand showed no sign of improvement and exports of goods and services fell by 24.6 percent and 13.7 percent

May 31, 2016 | BY admin

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Govt in talks with Guangdong over nuclear plant safety

The government said in a statement last night it had asked its Guangdong counterpart to provide it with details about a future nuclear plant in Taishan, in order to dispel public concerns about a potential nuclear incident. The statement was published by the Office of the Government’s Spokesperson.Earlier this year, Hong Kong’s news media drew attention to alleged safety concerns over the nuclear plant in Taishan city, which is located 130 kilometres from Hong Kong, as it was claimed

May 31, 2016 | BY admin

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Activists slam govt over blocked scooter parking spaces

Members of the grassroots People Power group yesterday slammed the Civic and Municipal Affairs Bureau (IACM) for failing to tackle public scooter parking spaces that are being illegally occupied.The activists want the bureau to look into the matter and solve the matter.High-profile activist Cheong Weng Fat, a vice-chairman of the union, made the criticism during an outdoor press briefing near the Barrier Gate checkpoint.Accompanied by fellow activists, grassroots People Power Vice Chairman

May 31, 2016 | BY admin

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Casino crimes rise 56 pct in Q1: security chief

Secretary for Security Wong Sio Chak said yesterday that the number of gaming-related crimes rose by 55.9 percent year-on-year in the first quarter of the year.Wong announced the city’s crime figures for the first three months of the year during a press conference at his office in Cotai.According to Wong, gaming-related criminal activities, such as loan sharking and false imprisonment, recorded a comparatively large increase compared with the same period last year, respectively up by 55.9

May 31, 2016 | BY admin

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Govt approves 44 pct fewer roadworks last year

The government approved 990 roadwork projects last year, a 41.7 percent drop compared to the 1,699 roadworks approved in 2014, Transport Bureau (DSAT) Director Lam Hin San said yesterday. Responding to lawmaker-cum-unionist Kwan Tsui Hang’s remarks during yesterday’s Q&A session in the legislature that “Macau’s endless roadworks constitute an endemic problem”, Lam said the government’s interdepartmental Road Projects Co-ordination Group, which was established in 2009, had

May 31, 2016 | BY admin

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