MACAO, Nov. 25 (Xinhuanet) -- Given the current momentum of tourist arrivals, Macao's tourist authority foresaw a 1 percent ofannual increase in the category in 2003, which was severely marredby the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), said a tourist official here Tuesday.

    Maria Helena de Senna Fernandes, deputy director of the TouristOffice of the Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) said that Macao witnessed a consistent increase of tourist arrivals from June to October.

    By the end of October, the tourist market, negatively affected by the epidemic outbreak in Macao's surrounding regions, basicallymended up the losses in the first half year, with the number of tourists in the first 10 months breaking even that in the corresponding period of the previous year, she said.

    "Diversified tourists activities with the themes of the Macao Grand Prix Racing in November and the Christmas travel spree in December are expected to sustain the booming momentum on the tourist market," said Fernandes.

    Macao host over 11 million tourists in 2002. With the mainland's implementation of a step-by-step facilitated individual travel policy on Macao and Hong Kong-bounded tours since July, the SAR, whose economy is largely dependent on gaming-oriented tourism, hasgiven a higher expectation on the tourist income this year. Enditem