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Chinese tourists flock to gambling hub Macau for Labour Day holiday

April 30, 2023900 Views

Hundreds of thousands of mainland Chinese visitors have descended on the world's biggest gambling hub of Macau for the Labour Day holiday, packing tightly into its narrow cobblestone streets and placing bets in its glitzy casinos. The surge in visitors comes after China and its special administrative region Macau lifted strict COVID-19 restrictions in January, allowing visitors to stream into Macau for the first time in more than three years. More than 100,000 visitors arrived in the former Portuguese city each day on Saturday and Sunday, local media reported, citing government statistics, up from 60,000 a day recorded in previous days. A view of visitors in front of the ruins of Saint Paul's during Labour Day holiday in Macau, China, April 30, 2023. REUTERS/Lam Yik On the pas...

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Tourists swarm gambling hub Macau over Lunar New Year

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

January 26, 20231110 Views

The world's biggest gambling hub Macau has seen tens of thousands of tourists stream daily into its casinos and picturesque cobbled streets over the Lunar New Year holiday, a stark contrast to the dearth of visitors since 2020. Macau has seen a resurgence of tourists from mainland China since Jan. 8 after the special Chinese administrative region dropped all COVID-19 testing requirements for inbound travellers from the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Visitors pose for photos with a decoration outside the municipal affairs bureau during Lunar New Year in Macau, China, January 24, 2023. REUTERS/Lam Yik Macau welcomed more than 71,000 visitors on Monday, the highest single day record since the pandemic, its government said in a statement late on Tuesday. "I come here to gamble, i...

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Macau eases COVID rules, but tourism, casinos yet to rebound

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

January 3, 2023778 Views

Only a few tourists crisscrossed the wavy black and white paving of Macau’s historic Senado Square on a recent weekday and many of the shops were shuttered. The gaming hub on China’s south coast near Hong Kong has endured some of the world’s strictest anti-virus controls for nearly three years, and a loosening of border restrictions after China rolled back its “zero-COVID” strategy in early December is widely expected to boost its tourism-driven economy. Grand Lisboa casino is seen in Macao on Dec. 28, 2022. (AP Photo/Kanis Leung) But for now, China’s worst wave of infections so far is keeping away the hoards of high rollers who usually fill its casinos. From Dec. 23-27, the city saw a daily average of only 8,300 arrivals, according to police data. That’s just 68% of November’s l...

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Few tourists, deserted streets in casino hub Macau after reopening

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

December 30, 2022862 Views

Three years of COVID-19 forced Becky Zhang’s specialty food business in Macau to near collapse. Founded by her grandmother more than fifty years ago, her store selling pastries and dried beef only survived thanks to residents who bought small quantities to help keep them afloat. Now, even after the recent reopening of the world’s biggest gambling hub, tourists are few and many businesses are shuttered, underlining analysts' views that a recovery will be uneven and take some time. People wearing face masks walk under neon lights near casinos during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in Macau, China, December 29, 2022. REUTERS/Tyrone Siu “Macau has not seen any improvement after the recent reopening of the city because many people are infected with COVID, many shops are un...

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Macau to drop COVID tests for arriving passengers

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

December 22, 20221149 Views

International arrivals to Macau, including from Hong Kong and Taiwan, will no longer need to undergo a nucleic acid test after landing and will be able to move freely, the government said on Thursday, the biggest steps yet to relax stringent COVID measures. FILE HOTO: A visitor walks inside Macau Tower overlooking a general view of Macau peninsula, China. REUTERS/Bobby Yip However, travellers from overseas will still be required to present a negative nucleic acid test certificate for entry, the government said. The new requirements will be effective from Dec. 23. Earlier this week, Macau cancelled its regulations on risk zones in mainland China. Visitor arrivals to the world's biggest gambling hub dropped by 36.8% on the month and 54.3% year-on-year to 366,511 in November, ...

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Macau’s 6 casino operators get new licences, Malaysia’s Genting out

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

November 26, 2022997 Views

Macau’s government said on Saturday its six incumbent casino operators would be given new licences to operate in the world’s biggest gambling hub from January, with Malaysian operator Genting missing out on a spot. The highly anticipated announcement signals stability and continuity for the Macau operators who have invested more than $50 billion in the Chinese special administrative region in the past 20 years. But the requirement to spend on theme parks, music and sports adds to financial pressure at a time when revenue has plunged under anti-virus restrictions. Officials in Macau, the world’s biggest casino hub, told a news briefing the main considerations for granting licences included ensuring local employment, developing overseas tourist markets and developing non-gaming pr...

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Macau casino operators soar as China allows tour groups after nearly 3 years

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

September 27, 2022250 Views

Shares in Macau casino operators soared up to 13% on Monday after the city's leader said China would resume an e-visa scheme for mainland travellers and permit group tours, which could likely boost the footfall in the world's biggest gambling hub. The Chinese special administrative region, which is the only place in the country where it is legal for citizens to gamble in casinos, will aim to open to mainland tour groups in November for the first time in almost three years, the city's chief executive Ho Iat Seng said on Saturday. FILE PHOTO: A woman walks past a Bank of China branch next to the Grand Lisboa hotel and casino (R) in Macau, China December 21, 2019. REUTERS/Jason Lee Macau, a former Portuguese colony, has implemented stringent COVID-19 pandemic restrictions with tight...

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‘Las Vegas of Asia’ tells casinos to grow beyond gambling

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

July 12, 2022294 Views

Losing money due to COVID, the American casino giants that helped make Macao the “Las Vegas of Asia” face a fresh challenge: The tiny Chinese territory wants them to help reduce its reliance on gambling by paying to build theme parks and other attractions. The former Portuguese colony stayed out of business decisions for decades and now is aligning with official strategy on China’s mainland, where foreign companies are required to help pay for the ruling Communist Party’s development ambitions, profitable or not. FILE PHOTO: Gambling tables are set inside the casino during the opening ceremony of the Venetian Macao Resort in Macao. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung, File) The licenses of MGM Resorts, Las Vegas Sands, Wynn Resorts and three Chinese rivals that invested billions of dollars in M...

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Macau’s casino losses engulf gambling hub

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

June 1, 2022264 Views

Plunging casino revenues in Macau, the world's largest gambling hub, are taking a heavy toll on the wider economy, forcing hundreds of businesses to close down and pushing unemployment to its highest level since 2009. The former Portuguese colony on Wednesday posted one of its worst monthly gambling revenues since September 2020, a week after Macau's government warned that rising job losses and financial strains could trigger social conflicts and destabilise the city's security. The Chinese special administrative region is the only place in the country where it is legal to gamble in casinos. Heavily reliant on casino taxes, which account for more than 80% of government revenue, Macau has had little success in diversifying its economy. "We are the most reliant city in the worl...

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Macao’s casinos pin hopes on everyday gamblers after junket shutdowns

AWARA MUSAFIR BUREAU

December 21, 2021480 Views

Macao's casinos face a bleak short-term outlook after shutting most of their lucrative gaming rooms catering to wealthy gamblers and as COVID-19 travel restrictions prevent the shift to mass-market customers that they will depend on in the future. The former Portuguese colony that is the world's biggest gambling hub in terms of money wagered has long relied on the revenue from the VIP gaming rooms where high-rollers placed massive bets. But the Chinese government's recent crackdown on the junket business, which arranged the transportation, accommodation and the credit necessary to gamble for wealthy clients, is calling into question the financial outlook for casino operators including Wynn Macao, Sands China and MGM China. Junket-run gaming rooms inside casinos made up roughl...