The Macau Metro Monitor, March 23, 2011
SIDE-BETTING 'JUST SPECULATION' Macau Daily Times
US consul general for HK and Macau, Stephen Young, said that the claim made by the US Department of State of illegal side-betting in Macau being 10x higher than GGR is "just speculation or a guess". “I’m not an expert. I can’t give you any more [information] on this idea that there is a lot of side-betting. I also read that a lot of this side-betting is maybe done off-shore, not in Macau,” he added.
Regarding junkets, Young commented, “I still find the whole junkets business a little puzzling. I don’t quite understand how they manage to bring Renminbi here. If the gamblers win, everything’s fine. If they lose, I wonder how they pay off that debt.”
MACAU VISITOR ARRIVALS FOR FEBRUARY 2011 DSEC
Total visitor arrivals increased by 5.2% YoY to 2,164,249 in February 2011. Visitors from Mainland China rose by 5.1% YoY to 1,204,301. Those traveling to Macau under the Individual Visit Scheme totaled 580,415, up 0.2% YoY. Visitors from Hong Kong (657,355), Republic of Korea (39,332) and Japan (32,081) increased by 7.3%, 42.5% and 13.3% respectively, while those from Taiwan (86,293) decreased by 13.8%.
SINGAPORE'S INFLATION UP 5% YOY IN FEBRUARY Channel News Asia
Spore's February CPI rose by 5%, versus market expectations for a rise of 5.4%. Core inflation measure, which is tracked by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) rose 1.8% YoY, versus 2.0% in January. Costs of transport, housing and food rose slower than expected.
BIG JUMP IN IMPORTED LABOUR macaubusiness.com
In January 2011, the total number of non-resident workers in Macau stood at 77,900, an increase of almost 2,100 workers in just one month.
GRAND LAPA TO GO UNDER MAJOR RENOVATION macaubusiness.com
According to Vincent Studer, executive assistant manager of the Grand Lapa hotel, the Grand Lapa will undergo a major renovation project, including a face lift of the Tung Yee Heen restaurant. Grand Lapa is part of Sociedade de Turismo e Diversões de Macau and is managed by the Mandarin Oriental group.