Consumer Council pays attention to the rights of consumers of financial services. A questionnaire was sent out to local banks to survey the service charges levied on dormant bank accounts. Results of the questionnaire can be found in issue no. 247 of Consumer Report.

Consumers utilize financial services frequently to manage personal finances, consumer rights, such as the cost of using such services, the policies and quality of the services provided by financial institutions, as well as how consumers’ personal data is handled properly and confidentially have become critical issues for consumer organizations.

In 2010, Consumer Council conducted a comprehensive survey on bank services and charges; a new questionnaire has been sent out recently to local banks to survey about the service charges levied on dormant bank accounts, and about minimum balance requirements on savings accounts. The Council hopes to make it more transparent for consumers to know about the services provided by banks and their charges involved so that any irrelevant service charges can be avoided.

The latest issue of Consumer Report also reports on the annual themes of Consumes International (CI) and China Consumers’ Association (CAA).

As mobile phones become popularized around the world in recent years, issues such as mobile phone fees, the contract terms between consumers and service providers, and other policies have become major consumer disputes. The CI therefore announced the annual theme of 2014 to be ‘Fix Our Phone Rights!’, calling on consumer organizations all over the world to pay heed to consumer rights in the development of mobile phone services.

The CAA, on the other hand, focuses on the newly amended Law of the People's Republic of China on Protecting Consumers' Rights and Interests, and announced the theme of 2014 as ‘New Law, New Rights, New Responsibilities’.

The latest Consume Report also features the details of the Chinese news writing competition and the Chinese crossword puzzle launched by the Council. Consumer Report is now available free of charge at the Consumer Council (Av. Horta e Costa, N.º 24-A, Edf. Cheung Heng, R/C), and the service counter of the Council at Macao SAR Government Service Centre (Rua Nova da Areia Preta, Nº52), Public Information Centre at Vicky Plaza, libraries and bookstores. Consumers may also access the magazine online on the Council’s official website (http://www.consumer.gov.mo). For enquiries, please call 8988 9315.