Briefs | ‘Carmen’ shows come to a close

The Macao Cultural Centre (CCM) presented the last of two performances of “Carmen,” a dance adaptation of Bizet’s operatic masterpiece brought by Spain’s National Dance Company (CND), on Friday night. The performance, choreographed by Swedish dancer Johan Inger, presented an “uncontaminated view of a classic production,” which is seen through the “innocent eyes” of a young boy, according to CCM. Blending the original score with contemporary music, the performance also drew on both the opera’s Spanish origins as well as the Nordic influence brought into the mix by Inger. The two shows were held November 3 and 4, with the former show preceded by backstage tours and a talk delivered by Hong Kong ballet lecturer Stella Lau. Additionally, José Carlos Martinez, CND’s artistic director and former principal dancer of the Paris Opera Ballet, presented two dance workshops ahead of the performances, held on November 1 and 2.

Hong Kong man commits arson at A-Ma Temple

Early Saturday morning, a Hong Kong man committed arson at A-Ma Temple, Macao Daily reported. Surnamed Wong, the man is 30 years old and unemployed. The police stated that the suspect exhibited strange behavior recently and could always be found with a cigarette in his hand. After he was arrested, it was revealed that the suspect suffers from a mental illness and was sent to Centro Hospitalar Conde de São Januário.

Amendments to money laundering and terrorism laws

The Executive Council has made a few amendments to the city’s laws relating to money laundering and terrorism. According to a notice published last week, both the law of prevention and suppression of money laundering and law of prevention and suppression of terrorism now contain expanded definitions of these two crimes. The extended list of activities considered to be related to money laundering include briberies and acts of corruption, smuggling, crimes of copyright infringement, crimes against industrial rights, and prostitution.

Beto releases new album

Local singer-songwriter Beto released his music album yesterday. at Indonesia Street Shop in Ocean Garden, Taipa. Guest performers at the event included Russian rapper MC HD and local girl band Gabion Sisters.  The artist has released several EPs as well as compilation CDs alongside other artist in Australia, Hong Kong and Indonesia. Beto will now continue work on his second album. “I will start getting into the studio in the first half of next year,” he said, “and all the songs will be first-time ever recorded, so all new.”

Gov’t aims to reduce trash by 30 percent in ten years

The director of the Environmental Protection Bureau, Raymond Tam, has announced that the authorities will aim to make a 30 percent reduction of the average per capita waste within 10 years. During his talk at the Macao Forum, Tam stated that the government is working on expanding trash burning centers in the city. He further stated that the government is also researching the implementation of geotechnical improvements in order to lower the height of the waste deposits located in the city’s landfill, as well as to increase the landfill’s capacity.

Local middle-aged woman cheated out of RMB100,000

A local woman, around 50 years old, sought help from the police because she was afraid that a mainland man, who she had only known for two months through a mobile chat application, might blackmail her with nude pictures of herself. The Judiciary Police revealed last week that the woman began chatting with the suspect in August. The man claimed to be a casino employee in Macau. Last month, the suspect asked the victim to send him nude pictures, which she did. Later, the suspect told the woman that he had won RMB14 million from a mainland lottery, and asked her to give him RMB123,000 to pay the fees involved in the procedure to claim the prize. The woman then transferred RMB100,000 to the man, and has since lost contact with him. Afraid of being blackmailed by the man with her nude pictures, the victim reported the case to the police.

Money supply continues to grow

The money supply continued to grow in September, according to information released on Friday by the Monetary Authority of Macau. Currency in circulation and demand deposits grew by 0.3 percent and 2.5 percent respectively, with the shares denominated in MOP, HKD, RMB and USD standing at 31.1 percent, 52.2 percent, 5.8 percent and 8.6 percent respectively. In September, resident deposits increased by 0.4 percent from the preceding month to MOP492.5 billion, whereas non-resident deposits dropped by 0.9 percent to MOP276.5 billion. The third major component, public sector deposits with the banking sector, increased by 2.5 percent to MOP160.2 billion. Meanwhile, domestic loans to the private sector increased by 1 percent from August to MOP412.6 billion, of which some MOP121 billion was denominated in MOP. External loans dropped 0.8 percent to MOP367.4 billion. As total deposits increased at a faster rate than total loans, the overall loan-to-deposit ratio of the banking sector dropped from a month earlier.

Bus lane to be extended to Fai Chi Kei

The bus-only lane running from Barra to Doca Lam Mau will be extended to Fai Chi Kei in the future, according to Kuong Vai Cheok, head of Transport Planning and Development Department. Kuong informed that there is currently construction work taking place alongside the bus lane due to the building of a street market. When this project is complete, the bus lane to Fai Chi Kei will then begin operating. Kuong also stated that, in regard to San Ma Lou where a bus-only lane runs during the weekends and on public holidays, an extension to the bus lane is not expected.

New companies’ capital down two-thirds

A total of 1,087 new companies were created in the third quarter of 2016, according to a statement issued by the Statistics and Census Service, marking a decrease of 139 when compared with the same period last year. Analyzed by industry, there were 364 new companies operating in the Wholesale & Retail category, and 257 in Business Services. The total value of registered capital concerning newly-incorporated companies dropped in the third quarter by more than two-thirds to MOP124 million, of which registered capital of Business Services (MOP18 million) was down by 93.9 percent. In the same period, the number of companies in dissolution totaled 163, representing a total registered capital of MOP30 million. For the first three quarters of 2016, a total of 3,345 new companies were incorporated, down by 630 year-on-year. This year’s addition brings the total number of registered companies in Macau to 55,816.