Macau will give all permanent residents a handout of about US$375 to address concerns that the city’s poor are not benefiting from its booming gambling scene, the government said yesterday.
Macau Chief Executive Fernando Chui (崔世安) announced the cash giveaway — 3,000 patacas (US$375) for permanent residents and 1,800 patacas for non-permanent residents — as the city posted a 41.8 billion pataca budget surplus last year.
Macau, the only city in China that allows casino gambling, has become the world’s biggest gaming hub with US$23.5 billion wagered at its tables last year, but there have been concerns about the growing income gap despite the billions of dollars pouring into its gambling industry. It has a population of just over 550,000.
The announcement comes after nearby Hong Kong announced a HK$6,000 (US$770) cash handout to adult permanent residents and salary tax cuts following a huge fiscal surplus for the last financial year, which ended on March 31.
In a legislative session on Wednesday, Chui told Macau lawmakers the cash is aimed at helping counter high inflation.
He said the decision to spend 1.7 billion patacas on the “wealth-sharing scheme” was made after taking into account the city’s surging inflation and the government’s large budget surplus.
Chui also announced the introduction of a special stamp duty to help curb property speculation.
Properties bought and sold within a year of purchase will be subject to a 20 percent stamp duty, while properties sold between one to two years after purchase will face a 10 percent levy.
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