Briefs | No intentions to increase capital size of regional fund

The Monetary Authority of Macao (AMCM) said in a statement this week that all partners of the Guangdong-Macau Cooperation and Development Fund, of which the Macau Government is a part of and invests a total of RMB20 billion from its Fiscal Reserve, have no intention to increase the capital size. The Fund is jointly initiated by Guangdong and the MSAR and managed by Chinese-state-owned enterprises. Guangdong Hengjian Investment Holding Co., Ltd and Guangdong Namyue Group, are also said by the AMCM to be operating in a market-oriented manner, investing in key high-quality projects including those related to the Greater Bay Area effort. It is intended that such projects will be beneficial to the economy and livelihood of the two regions as well as infrastructure of free trade zones in Guangdong. Reaffirming that there are no intentions for the timebeing to raise that capital, the AMCM noted that “to allow more flexibility for future cooperation, both parties agree that, depending on future conditions, both sides can increase the capital size on the basis of a unanimous agreement until the established limit of RMB100 billion.”

LRT contractors to be penalized for unexplained delays

The Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau (DSSOPT) has discussed regulations that would penalize Light Rapid Transit (LRT) contractors who delay the LRT construction without providing a reasonable explanation. In reply to lawmaker Leong Sun Iok’s inquiry, DSSOPT pledged that the SAR government would closely supervise the LRT construction in order to ensure the timely and qualified completion of the LRT, as well as to cooperate with the opening of the LRT Taipa section in 2019. The DSSOPT claimed that the LRT construction progress would continue to be pending amid legal cases concerning the project.