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Macau hits the jackpot with £28bn casino takings | Macau hits the jackpot with £28bn casino takings |
(4 days later) | |
The tiny Chinese city of Macau has again smashed its annual record for casino earnings as revenues last year hit a staggering £28bn, further underlining its position as the world's biggest gambling market. | The tiny Chinese city of Macau has again smashed its annual record for casino earnings as revenues last year hit a staggering £28bn, further underlining its position as the world's biggest gambling market. |
Macau's nearly three dozen casinos raked in 33.5bn patacas (£2.55bn) in December, according to data released by the Gaming Inspection and Co-ordination Bureau, the gambling regulator. That brought revenue for 2013 to 360.8bn patacas up 18.6% from 2012. | Macau's nearly three dozen casinos raked in 33.5bn patacas (£2.55bn) in December, according to data released by the Gaming Inspection and Co-ordination Bureau, the gambling regulator. That brought revenue for 2013 to 360.8bn patacas up 18.6% from 2012. |
Analyst Grant Govertsen of Union Gaming Research estimated that Macau's take would be more than seven times the amount from the Las Vegas Strip. | Analyst Grant Govertsen of Union Gaming Research estimated that Macau's take would be more than seven times the amount from the Las Vegas Strip. |
The former Portuguese colony's once-lethargic casino market has thrived since the government ended a gambling monopoly a decade ago and let in foreign players such as Las Vegas Sands Corp and Wynn Resorts. | The former Portuguese colony's once-lethargic casino market has thrived since the government ended a gambling monopoly a decade ago and let in foreign players such as Las Vegas Sands Corp and Wynn Resorts. |
The ensuing competition has transformed the tiny enclave into a gambling powerhouse, with glitzy new casino resorts centered on the Cotai Strip, marketed as Asia's version of the Las Vegas Strip. | The ensuing competition has transformed the tiny enclave into a gambling powerhouse, with glitzy new casino resorts centered on the Cotai Strip, marketed as Asia's version of the Las Vegas Strip. |
All six casino operators in Macau, an hour by high-speed ferry from Hong Kong, are pouring billions of dollars into new megaprojects in the district in a fresh round of expansion. | All six casino operators in Macau, an hour by high-speed ferry from Hong Kong, are pouring billions of dollars into new megaprojects in the district in a fresh round of expansion. |
Macau's casino revenues are the envy of other markets around Asia, which have been looking at ways to duplicate the southern Chinese city's success. | Macau's casino revenues are the envy of other markets around Asia, which have been looking at ways to duplicate the southern Chinese city's success. |
Increasing numbers of wealthy high-rolling visitors from mainland China have helped power Macau's rise as a casino hub. | Increasing numbers of wealthy high-rolling visitors from mainland China have helped power Macau's rise as a casino hub. |
Revenue has already overtaken the entire US market, where a year ago around 12,000 casinos raked in $37.3bn (£22.7bn), according to figures from the American Gaming Association. In the same period Macau, which has 35 casinos and a population of about 560,000, took $38bn, according to the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau. | Revenue has already overtaken the entire US market, where a year ago around 12,000 casinos raked in $37.3bn (£22.7bn), according to figures from the American Gaming Association. In the same period Macau, which has 35 casinos and a population of about 560,000, took $38bn, according to the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau. |
• The subheading on this article was amended on 6 January 2014 to correct a currency conversion | |
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