The Macau Metro Monitor, August 27, 2012
SANDS BULLISH ABOUT MASS MARKET Macau Business
Sands China president and CEO Edward Tracy is bullish about continued growth for Mass. Tracy told TDM over the weekend that he expects this segment to continue to grow as transport and immigration infrastructure between the mainland and Macau improves. Meanwhile, LVS is in fresh trouble.
A Reuters report says LVS's Venetian Las Vegas transferred a US$100,000 (MOP800,000) gambling credit to the Sands Macau in January 2009 on behalf of Charles Heung Wah Keung, chairman of Hong Kong-listed China Star Entertainment Ltd, which owns and operates hotel-casino Lan Kwai Fong Macau. A 1992 U.S. Senate subcommittee probe into Asian organised crime identified Heung as a triad member. He has always denied such links and has never been convicted of being a triad member.
DICJ DENIED NEW ACCOUNTING RULES FOR TABLE GAMES Macau Daily News, Macau Business
DICJ has denied a new accounting method for poker tables which would count up to 25 poker tables as one table. But several gaming industry sources contacted by Business Daily say otherwise, adding the government decided to do a U-turn on the new counting method once it was reported in the media.
MAINLAND MIGHT LAUNCH E-PASS TO TRAVELERS TO EASE BORDER CROSSING Macau Daily News
Mainland is examining the feasibility to issue e-pass for travelers so to shorten the border crossing time to Macau. Some travelers claimed that they spent around 2 hours in line to cross the border and claimed if they are issued with e-pass, this will increase their number of visits. With the e-pass, visitors can access the automated passenger clearance system (also known as e-channel), which has been available for Macau residents and frequent visitors.
In addition, the expansion project at the Gongbei border is expected to be completed by the end of 2012 and operational in early 2013.
EMPLOYMENT SURVEY FOR MAY-JULY 2012 DSEC
Macau unemployment rate for May-July 2012 receded to 2.0%, down by 0.1% point over the previous period (April-June 2012). Total labour force increased by 2,500 from the previous period to 348,000; the labour force participation rate stood at 72.2%, up by 0.3% point.
JOCKEY CLUB EXPECTS DROP IN BETTING VOLUME Macau Business
The Macau Jockey Club is expecting to record a drop of at least 10% in the amount of bets for the horseracing season that ended the past weekend. The club’s betting controller, Ronnie Chan Yiu Jok, told media that the decrease is attributed to an overall trend of falling bets in the global horseracing market.
The previous horseracing season, which ended in August last year, recorded bets of over MOP1.6 billion while the club posted a loss of MOP17.8 million last year.
SLOT MACHINES SEIZED IN MAINLAND CHINA Macau Daily News
The Mainland police busted a network that produced and supplied gambling machines to game centers in 30 provinces for operating illegal casinos in an anti-gambling crackdown. The police arrested 1,500 people, 20,000 machines found and over $16 million yuan of cash. The police found that an electronics company and an animation company in Guangzhou jointly operated casinos with other parties in the 30 provinces across the country.
