Briefs | Anti-mosquito works damage two cultural relics

Two people were transferred to the prosecution authority after they damaged two cultural relics in Lilau Square. The suspects were arrested last week. One is a person in charge of a construction company in Macau and the other is a mainland worker. The damaged area of the affected wall is 1.5 meters wide and 1 meter high. According to the Judiciary Police (PJ), the two men were conducting anti-mosquito and weeding works at the concerned location. The mainland worker said he did not know the building was a protected cultural relic. He used a machine to drill into the wall. The PJ has reported that the owner of the damaged building will repair it according to the requirements of the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC). In total, Macau has more than 600 cultural relic buildings, with most of them privately owned. The IC says it conducts regular inspections of the city’s cultural relic buildings.

Hainan launches yacht scheme

Hainan province has launched a free yacht scheme with Hong Kong and Macau, according to a plan published last week by the State Council of China. Yachts from the SARs can enter eight marine sightseeing locations in Hainan. As the development and actual needs of the yacht free scheme change in the future, entry and exit ports can be adjusted according to the authorization. In total, there are five ferry terminals in Hainan available for entry and exit, including one in Sanya. Yachts can park at six approved ferry terminals, including two in Sanya. The plan does not mention fees for entry and exit. Earlier, in 2017, Guangdong launched a free yacht scheme together with Hong Kong and Macau. However, the program was not popular and it remains inactive due to complex immigration procedures on the mainland side and heavy taxes.

DSEJ promises to reduce schoolbag weight

The Education and Youth Affairs Bureau (DSEJ) has been said to be interested in launching a scheme to weigh students’ backpacks, according to Synergy of Macao. The association visited the DSEJ last week to reflect on the problem of overweight schoolbags. According to a local government’s guideline, schoolbags should not exceed 15 percent of the students’ weight. However, the association’s survey showed that 75 percent of schoolbags of more than 180 primary school students weigh more than the weight stipulated on the guideline. Lam U Tou, president of the association, said that the DSEJ promised that all school textbooks sponsored by DSEJ will use lighter paper and will be published into smaller books, and that the bureau will launch a schoolbag weighing program to let schools be more aware of their students’ schoolbag weight. Moreover, according to Lam, the association proposed to the DSEJ to set schoolbag’s maximum weight at 10 percent of the student’s weight. The DSEJ has reportedly endorsed the proposal.

Wynn targets overseas gamblers for Encore Boston

Wynn Resorts Ltd. expects to pack its new USD2.6 billion casino-resort in Boston with 15,000 to 20,000 people a day, many from outside the U.S. The Encore Boston Harbor casino, perched along the Mystic River in Everett, Massachusetts, will attract customers from Latin America and as far away as Asia, Chief Executive Officer Matt Maddox said on Bloomberg Television. The project will test whether Bostonians are ready for Vegas-style glitz so close to the city. It features 15 restaurants and bars, and the casino got permission to serve drinks until 4 a.m. – two hours later than normal in the state. Earlier this year, Wynn shocked the casino industry and state officials by holding talks with MGM Resorts International about selling Encore Boston Harbor. The two companies quickly ended the discussions, clearing the way for Wynn to open the resort. “Encore Boston Harbor is not for sale,” Maddox reiterated on Friday. “Those talks were ceased before they really even started.”

Visitor arrivals up 21% to date

The number of visitors coming to Macau in the first five months of 2019 has surpassed 17.18 million, according to government records, up by 21% year-on-year. The surge, which has stoked fears in Macau of overtourism, is led by a 34% increase in same-day visitors to 9.23 million over the five-month period. Meanwhile, the number of overnight visitors rose 8.7% to 7.95 million. As a result of the imbalanced growth between the two market segments, the average length of stay of visitors has shorted by 0.1 days year-on-year to 1.1 days. Analyzed by place of origin, mainland China (12.21 million) continues to be responsible for the majority of visitors to Macau, followed by Hong Kong (3.07 million), Taiwan (441,519) and South Korea (389,387).

Consumer prices increase 2.7%

The Composite Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased by 2.69% year-on-year in May 2019 to reach 115.46, according to the latest data from the Statistics and Census Service, which attributed the rise to dearer charges for eating out, higher rentals for dwellings, and rising motor vehicle prices. Among the various sections of goods and services, the price indexes for education and transport grew by 5.9% and 4.88% respectively year-on-year, whereas the index for communication fell 0.79% and that of alcoholic beverages and tobacco dropped 0.21%. For the 12 months ending May 2019, the average Composite CPI rose by 3.07% from the previous period, with notable growth in the transport, education and clothing sectors.