Source: Xinhuanet

06-29-2006 17:28

The Chinese mainland and the Macao Special Administrative Region (MSAR) have been speeding up the mutual cooperation, as the two sides signed a new agreement in Macao on Monday.

Liao Xiaoqi, Vice Minister of Commerce, and Tam Pak Yuen, Secretary for Economy and Finance, sealed the third supplementary pact of the mainland/Macao Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA) representing the two sides.

Tam Pak Yuen said at the signing ceremony that the pact was comprised of three sections on the trade in goods and services, and investment facilitation.

Tam, who declined to disclose more details, said the Ministry of Commerce will deliver the detailed terms of the agreement on Thursday, marking the third anniversary of the signing of CEPA.

Meanwhile, a press release issued by Tam's office said the agreement covers the sections of zero-tax items, the further opening-up of the service industry and the widening of investment areas.

Tam Pak Yuen told local media that the new agreement was meant to help the survival of a number of Macao's manufacturing industries and to help "diversify" Macao's economy.

A government statement issued Monday said the CEPA and its supplementary pacts have offered tariff-free status to a total of 601 Macao-originated products, including plastic bags, cement, garments and coffee.

A total of 190 tariff-free certifications on Macao-originated products have been put in effect, resulting in a total of 12.32 million patacas (1.54 million U.S. dollars) in Macao's export, according to the statement.

It added that the CEPA has saved Macao businesses 1.04 million patacas (130,000 U.S. dollars) in customs duties.

The CEPA has allowed 26 industries of Macao's service sector to operate in the mainland and 24 small and Medium-sized enterprises to launch businesses in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangdong, said the statement.

In the area of legal services, five Macao-based lawyers have been certified by the Ministry of Justice as appointed notaries.

In the area of medical services, some 100 Macao residents have obtained the certifications to practice medicine in the mainland, said the statement.

The CEPA, signed in 2003, is aimed at strengthening the trade relations between the Chinese mainland and the MSAR.

 

Editor:Chen Minji