Corruption crackdown adds to Macau woe as gambling slumps
The ongoing slump afflicting Macau’s gaming industry shows no sign of abating after figures released yesterday revealed a 37 per cent plunge in year-on-year revenues for May.
The decline represents the twelfth consecutive month of year-on-year falls after Macau’s Gaming Inspection & Coordination Bureau said revenues for the period fell to $2.6bn (£1.7bn).
Macau, which only ceased to be a Portuguese colony in 1999, is the only city in China where casinos are legally allowed to operate. However, a crackdown on corruption by the Communist party has hit revenues at the city’s resorts hard as high-rollers have been deterred from gambling in public.
The slowdown comes despite casino operators ploughing on with more than $20bn of investment in new resorts and infrastructure. Macau is particularly susceptible to the slow down as it depends on the industry for 80 per cent of revenue.