The Chinese central government and the government of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) Monday signed a new deal based on the existing trade agreements, granting the SAR's service providers more access to the mainland market.

The Supplement VI to the Mainland and Macao Closer Economic Partnership Arrangement (CEPA6) was signed by Tam Pak Yuen, secretary for economy and finance of the SAR government and the central government's Vice Minister of Commerce Jiang Zengwei at a ceremony witnessed by the Macao SAR's Chief Executive Ho Hau Wah.

Building on the liberalization of 18 services sectors, some 31 policy measures will be introduced and one more sectors of research and development will be opened by the mainland authorities to further facilitate market access for Macao service providers and businessmen, according to the Supplement VI. As a result, the total number of services sectors covered by the CEPA and its supplements will be expanded to 41.

The new measures, which will take effect on October 1, 2009, mainly concern industries such as tourism, MICE (Meeting, Incentive, Convention, Exhibition), and medical services.

Under the Supplement VI, mainland travel agents authorized to operate group tours to Taiwan can organize group tours for mainland residents to enter Macao SAR in transit, which was aimed to help travel trade develop multi-destination tourism packages.

As for the MICE industry, which is a prominent industry in the SAR's effort to diversify its economy, service providers in the SAR will be allowed to operate exhibitions through cross-border supply in major Chinese municipality, such as Beijing, Tianjin and Chongqing, and provinces including Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Fujian, in addition to Guangdong and Shanghai which has already been opened to the SAR.

Meanwhile, Macao service providers and residents will also be allowed to run health clinics and work as pharmacists respectively in the mainland, as long as they acquire relevant licenses, according to the Supplement.

The CEPA between the mainland and the Macao SAR was firstly signed in 2003 and took effect in the following year, after which some six supplements to the trade agreement have been signed so far, as a step-by-step effort to open the mainland market to Macao. A similar trade agreement and supplements were also signed between the central government and Hong Kong SAR.

(Xinhua News Agency May 11, 2009)