Clinics in red owners cross
Talking money: Macau-HK summit
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Year I - Number 53 Wednesday June 13, 2012 Editor-in-chief: Tiago Azevedo Deputy editor-in-chief: José I. Duarte MOP 6.00
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Macau’s got talent but not to spare PAge 7
www.macaubusinessdaily.com
Raking it in
CITy MAKING MorE THAN IT CAN SpEND M
acau amassed a budget surplus of 35.2 billion patacas (US$4.4 billion) in the first five months of the year thanks to the city’s booming gambling industry. With the SAR posting an average surplus of 231.6 million patacas per day, the government’s target for the whole of 2012 was probably passed in the first four days of this month. Nearly 40 cents of every dollar wagered in Macau’s casinos goes to the government in tax. It’s one of the highest rates in any legal casino jurisdiction in the world. At the current rate of accumulation, the territory would close the books for the whole year with a surplus of 86.4 billion patacas, 2.4 times higher than the official prediction. But critics say that’s more a function of the poor quality of Macau’s budget forecasting than any unforeseen upward
fluctuations in demand for gambling among the city’s 25-million plus visitors per year. “Nobody believes the budget anymore, especially when it comes to revenue. And certainly no one compares the budget to the actual results to check if the government is efficient,” economist Albano Martins told Business Daily. In effect Macau is making more money than it can spend – the exact opposite of the economic problem facing european Union jurisdictions. With statistical full employment; shortages of imported labour; practical limitations on how many public works schemes can be conducted simultaneously without creating gridlock; and a limit on how many suitably-qualified managers are available to oversee public spending schemes, Macau couldn’t significantly reduce its surplus if it tried. MorE oN pAGE 3
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HANG SENG INDEX 18910
18860
Lau’s office starts La Scala review
18810
The government has begun considering whether to take back five plots granted to the developer of the luxury housing project La Scala now the land has become embroiled in the Ao Man Long corruption scandal. A Court of Final Appeal verdict two weeks ago in the third and final graft trial of former secretary for transport and public works Mr Ao didn’t make a specific recommendation on what should happen to the La Scala land. Now the office of Lau Si Io, the current Secretary for Transport and Public Works, says it has taken on that adjudication role. “After an in-depth analysis of the Court of Final Appeal verdict, the government has formally begun the procedures,” the statement adds. Last month Mr Lau revealed that 16 land deals called into question by Mr Ao’s first two graft trials have already been revoked. His cabinet again stressed it “does not exclude the possibility” of revoking the 2006 concession for La Scala. But the statement made no mention of a further eight plots granted to La Scala in March 2011 – an extra concession fiercely criticised by some legislators. Joseph Lau Luen Hung, the head of La Scala’s developer Hong Kong-listed Chinese Estates Holdings, was named by the Court of Final Appeal judges as having bribed Mr Ao with HK$20 million (US$2.6 million) to secure the rights to the plots located near the airport.
V.Q.
18760
18710
June 12
AirAsia wanted Macau base
HSI - Movers
Malaysia-based airline AirAsia Bhd had just started discussing “possible plans for cooperation” with Viva Macau when the carrier was grounded in 2010, AirAsia’s general manager in China told Business Daily. The negotiation was initiated by Viva Macau through a middleman. “Our company wants to build bases in different countries and Viva [Macau] gave us a possible chance to have one in Macau,” Liu Xiaoyuan said. pAGE 2
No inspection for one Grantai Buyers of units at luxury housing complex One grantai rantai face a further wait before they can move in. The Taipa project has been sitting idle for months after authorities rejected an initial request for building inspection, because the developer changed the project’s architectural plans ‘many times’. A so-called ‘need request’ was filed last month, the Land, Public Works and Transport Bureau said. pAGE 4
NAME
%DAy
CHINA RES LAND
2.22
CHINA OVERSEAS
1.42
SUN HUNG KAI PRO
1.36
SWIRE PACIFIC-A
0.83
POWER ASSETS HOL
0.81
TENCENT HOLDINGS
-2.42
BELLE INTERNATIO
-2.45
CHINA RES POWER
-2.57
WHARF HLDG
-2.73
CHINA RES ENTERP
-3.63
Source: Bloomberg
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