China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) on Friday hosted a variety of events across the city to mark the 100-day countdown to the opening of the 15th National Games of China.
At the iconic Ruins of St. Paul's, the "100-day countdown fitness walk" started with enthusiasm.
Hundreds of participants set off in high spirits, walking through Macao's historic streets all the way to Senado Square, where vibrant performances followed to liven up the celebration.
At Macao's Iao Hon Market Park Square, a lively evening gala was held to mark the countdown.
Lion dances, sports demonstrations, and singing performances brought the celebration to a climax.
"It's incredibly exciting that the National Games will be co-held in Macao for the first time. As a local, I feel so proud to be volunteering for this event. I wish all athletes great success in Macao, and I warmly welcome everyone to visit our city for the competitions and tourism!" said a resident of Macao.
"We're thrilled that the country has given Macao this opportunity to co-host such a major event. We welcome all national athletes and visitors to experience Macao's vitality. Together, let's make this a 'Passionate National Games, Vibrant Greater Bay Area'!" said another resident of Macao.
Earlier in the day, the licensed merchandise retail store for the Macao competition zone of the 15th National Games officially opened at the Tap Seac Multisport Pavilion, offering a range of official merchandise, including plush toys, commemorative badges, daily necessities, and handicrafts.
"We want to bring the National Games atmosphere into every neighborhood, ensuring that every Macao resident feels connected to this event. This isn't just a government initiative, it's an event for all citizens to participate in," said Pun Weng Kun, director of the preparatory office for Organizing the Macao Competition Zone.
Co-hosted by Guangdong, the Hong Kong SAR and Macao SAR, the grand games will take place from Nov 9 to 21.
Macao marks 100-day countdown to National Games with citywide events
Tokyo stocks ended lower Monday, with the benchmark 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average falling around 1 percent, amid concern that the surging yen could disrupt companies' business outlooks, said an analyst.
The benchmark Nikkei stock index, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average, ended down 607.12 points, or 0.94 percent, from Friday at 63,754.90.
The broader Topix index, meanwhile, finished 43.27 points, or 1.08 percent, lower at 3,960.03.
The Japanese yen rose sharply on Monday, briefly surging to the lower 155 yen range against the U.S. dollar, after Japan confirmed joint currency market intervention with the United States and possible further intervention.
The U.S. dollar fetched 156.76-78 yen after briefly hitting 155.20 yen, compared with 157.33-43 yen in New York and 160.20-22 yen in Tokyo at 17:00 local time Friday.
"Over in Tokyo, the big story was of course the rare joint action by Japan and the U.S. to support the yen, which had been trading near 40-year lows in recent weeks. Japan's finance ministry confirmed that coordinated intervention today and said the two countries are prepared to act on that again. The yen rose as much as 1.4 percent at one stage and the Nikkei 225 fell around 1 percent. The stronger currency was weighing on exporters. There we had Suzuki Motor down 6.7 percent. Many Japanese-listed companies earn a substantial share of their revenues overseas, and a stronger yen reduces the value of those earnings when they are translated back into the Japanese currency. AI-linked stocks also weighed on the market, with the chip-testing-equipment maker Advantest down 3.3 percent," said Timothy Pope, a Shanghai-based market analyst for China Global Television Network (CGTN).
Pope said that in the rest of the week, investors are going to watch closely the earning reports to be released by the major companies.
"Tokyo has some major earnings to watch this week as well. So, we will be following Toyota, Nintendo and SoftBank -- all of them are due to report. SoftBank's results will be watched particularly closely for further clues about the returns, the risks as well as all of those associated with the enormous sums being invested in AI at the moment," said Pope.
Tokyo stocks end lower Monday on stronger yen: analyst
