Macau
Macau's increasing demand for quality retail workers means a rise in salaries, reports macauHR
Alongside the incredible pace at which the gaming and tourism industry in Macau has been developing, the retail sector is also quickly maturing, having benefitted much from the city's exponential growth. Since 2009, Macau's sales revenue has increased 40 percent year on year – especially in regards to luxury fashion, high-end jewellery and watch brands. The growth has also led to an increasing demand for well-trained and knowledgeable retail workers, as well as a respective competitive increase in retail salaries.
HK's Chow Tai Fook introduces new limited-edition sets of bridal jewelleries
Chow Tai Fook, the leading jewellery brand in mainland China, Hong Kong and Macau, has introduced two packaged offerings of "The Perfect One Bridal Treasure Trove", which includes the full complement of bridal jewelleries. Both boasting exceptionally classy pieces, "The Perfect One Gorgeous Bridal Treasure Trove" and "The Perfect One Glamorous Bridal Treasure Trove" are available at special packaged prices to suit different budgets. They are also perfect as gifts to offer wishes of "Sincerity • Eternity" to marrying couples.
Macau's Ginza Plaza struggles to get customers
The six-storey Ginza Plaza shopping centre, just a stone's throw from Macau's touristy Senado Square, is struggling to attract retailers and walk-in shoppers, Macau Business reports in its May issue.
The Ginza Plaza complex combines housing, shops and a car park in Rua de Pedro Nolasco da Silva. Its position could hardly be better, but after its first year and a half of business, most of the retailing area is empty.
Alipay launches new service in HK, Macau
Alipay, the online payment unit of Alibaba Group, said on Tuesday it has launched a convenient payment service to allow people in Hong Kong and Macau to shop more conveniently as it steps up efforts to attract more overseas users.
Bank of China credit card holders in Hong Kong and Macau will be able to shop at Taobao Marketplace and Tmall with a verification code sent to their mobile phones as well as the credit cards' card number and validity date, saving them the trouble of opening an online payment service at bank outlets.
Macau sees surge in gambling revenue in Apr
Gambling revenue in Macau, the world's biggest gambling destination, surged 21.9 percent to MOP25 billion (USD3.13b) in April, in line with analyst forecasts, after the opening of a new USD4 billion casino drew strong demand from deep-pocketed Chinese visitors.
A tiny enclave off China's southern coast, Macau's booming casino town has been a goldmine for US casino giants such as Las Vegas Sands, which have reaped stellar profits from their Macau subsidiaries.
HK's Luk Fook opens 5 shops in HK & Macau, to add 30 shops in China before May
Hong Kong-listed jeweller Luk Fook Holdings (International) Limited (the Group) on Sunday announced that the company has opened five new shops in Hong Kong and Macau this month and will open approximately 30 new shops in mainland China before the coming Labour Day Golden Week in May, adding the number of Luk Fook retail outlets across the world to a total of 870.
Macau gambling revenue up 24pc
Gambling revenue rose 24 percent in Macau last month from a year earlier as gamblers from mainland China continued to fuel growth.
Gambling revenue in Macau, the only place in China where casino gambling is legal, rose to MOP24.99 billion (USD3.12 billion), Macau's Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau said on Monday. First-quarter gambling revenue rose 27 percent from a year earlier.
Macau to reach up to 32m visitors in 2012
The total number of visitors to Macau for the whole of 2012 is expected to reach up to 32 million, according to Union Gaming Research Macau.
Analysts Grant Govertsen and Felicity Chiang wrote in an industry note they expect the total number of tourists to go up 10 percent to 15 percent in 2012.
"We would also expect high-margin mass market gross gaming revenue to grow at a rate that is more than double the rate of visitation growth," they said.
Macau's visitor arrivals up by 1.5pc in Feb
More than 2 million tourists flocked to Macau last month, but most only stayed a day.
Data from Macau's Statistic and Census Service show that visitor arrivals stood at 2.1 million in February, up by 1.5 percent year on year, with same-day visitors accounting for 53 percent of the total.
Macau shops in need of staff
At the end of last year, Macau's retail sector had over 2,900 job vacancies, up substantially by 43 percent year on year.
At December-end, the retail trade had 20,300 paid employees, an increase of 7.6 percent year on year.
