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GOVERNOR GEN. VASCO ROCHA VIEIRA OPENS 3RD INTERNATIONAL CONVENTION OF PORTUGUESE-
SPEAKING BUSINESSES

Macau's Governor, Gen. Vasco Rocha Vieira, opened the 3rd International Convention of Portuguese-speaking Businesses on April 12, stressing that China would be one of the world's leading economic powers in the next century.

The convention included businessmen from the Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries, which comprises Portugal, Cape Verde, Sao Tome and Principe, Guinea-Bissau, Angola, Mozambique and Brazil, as well as businessmen from Macau, Hong Kong and elsewhere in Asia. Gen. Vieira and Cape Verdean Prime Minister Carlos Veiga were the convention's special guests of honour.

IMF PRAISES MACAU GOVERNMENT FOR
ITS CAUTIOUS FISCAL STANCE

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) in Washington has praised the Macau government for its "success in maintaining a cautious fiscal stance". The praise is contained in a public information notice which was issued by the IMF executive directors in May.

The report, based on an IMF consultation process conducted in Macau last year, says that Macau, "despite stagnant economic activity in recent years, has maintained relative financial stability, characterised by moderate inflation and a strong external payments position", adding that "this is owed much to the Macau government's success in maintaining a cautious fiscal stance, and defending the pegged exchange rate (between the Hong Kong dollar and the Macau pataca) regime in the face of the deepening adverse impact of the Asian crisis in 1997-98".

The report also says that "in the longer term, Macau's ability to achieve sustained economic growth will hinge upon the success of its continuing efforts to improve productivity and diversify the economic base", adding that the preservation of the economy's position as a low-tax regime for business would be important.