The Macau Metro Monitor, November 23, 2012

HALF OF THE SLOT PARLOURS AFFECTED BY NEW POLICY: GOVT Macau Business 

“Nearly half of the 11 slot parlours” operating in Macau will have to either close or relocate under a new bylaw regulating the location of those gaming venues" said Secretary Tam.  Tam stressed the new bylaw “further tightens the parlour regulation, it does not relax it, unlike some opinions have reckoned.”  On Wednesday, the Executive Council, the government’s top advisory body, issued a press release saying that a new set of rules on the location of slot machine parlours was finally ready.  The new bylaw stipulates that slot parlours cannot operate in residential areas.  The government must adopt  “adequate measures” to solve the issue of slot parlours located in residential areas, within one year after the bylaw takes effect, said the press release.

The new rules state that slot parlours are to be located only inside five-star hotels, in non-residential buildings located within a 500-metre range of a casino or within a resort “not integrated in a densely populated area”.

PAUL Y. ENGINEERING GETS STUDIO CITY CONTRACT Macau Business

A joint venture between the Macau-based subsidiaries of Paul Y. Engineering Group Ltd and Yau Lee Holdings Ltd has been awarded the construction contract for the Studio City casino resort, a project majority owned by MPEL.  The contract sum for the project is approximately HK$10 billion (US$1.29 billion).  The completion date is expected to be in the middle of 2015.


Earlier this week, Paul Y. Engineering Group announced it was planning to raise HK$3.2 billion for the construction of a boutique casino hotel in Cotai, just next to the One Oasis residential project.  In the stock filing, it was not disclosed under which casino operator’s gaming licence the casino would operate, but a 2009 prospectus unveiled by Macau Daily Times names MPEL as the project’s partner.

MACAU VISITOR ARRIVALS DSEC

Visitor arrivals totalled 2,347,646 in October 2012, down by 1.2% YoY.  In October 2012, the average length of stay of visitors stood at 1.0 day, up by 0.1 YoY.  Visitors from Mainland China decreased by 1.4% YoY to 1,445,420, with those travelling to Macao under the Individual Visit Scheme rising by
6.0% to 612,073.

THE M3: SLOT PARLOURS; STUDIO CITY; VISITOR ARRIVALS; S'PORE CPI - MV

SINGAPORE'S INFLATION RATE EASES TO 4.0% IN OCT Channel News Asia

Singapore's inflation rate eased to 4% in October from 4.7% in September.  The core inflation rate, which excludes transport and accommodation costs, fell to 2.2% in October from 2.4% in September.  The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said, "The persistent tightness in the labor market will support slightly stronger wage increases in 2013, which will continue to be passed through to consumer prices."


On the whole, MAS anticipates core inflation to be "broadly stable" and averaging around 2.5% this year, and 2% to 3% in 2013.  For the full year, CPI-all items inflation will remain "elevated" in Q4 2012 and Q1 2013, reflecting significant contributions from housing and accommodation costs.  CPI-All items inflation is likely to come in slightly above 4.5% in 2012 and ease to 3.5% to 4.5% in 2013.