Stephen Hung resigns from The 13

Hong Kong investor Stephen Hung has resigned as joint chairman and executive director of The 13 Holdings Ltd., the company developing a “super-luxury” hotel-resort in Coloane called The 13. Hung has now been replaced by Peter Coker as company chairman. The resignation was announced late last week in a filing to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, shortly after the most recent delay to the hotel’s opening date and amid ongoing uncertainty over whether The 13 Holdings will be permitted to operate gaming facilities. The company last week said it would open by April 30, 2018, with or without a casino.

Customs seized 81,560 untaxed cigarettes

The Macau Customs Service seized more than 80,000 untaxed cigarettes in recent and continuing inspections across all districts in Macau, according to a statement released by the bureau.  On the days of January 22, 23 and 25, the Customs Service, along with tobacco control officers, inspected a total of 25 shops in Macau. In five of these stores, 81,560 cigarettes (4,078 packs) were seen on display without warning signs on the packs. All the incorrectly packaged cigarette packs belonged to famous cigarette brands. In total, the untaxed cigarettes correspond to an amount of approximately MOP122,000 in taxes. Five people have been taken to the Customs headquarters for further enquiry. According to the investigation, the cigarettes were purchased from mainland China by the owners of these shops, and were later sold to non-local workers and parallel goods traders. The responsible people will face a penalty of MOP5,000 to MOP100,000.