The Macau Metro Monitor, October 25, 2012

ALL SLOT MACHINES MUST DISPLAY WINNING ODDS BY OCTOBER Strait Times

By October 2013, all slot machines at the two Singapore casinos must display the odds of a punter hitting winning combinations.  The Casino Regulatory Authority (CRA) implemented this requirement earlier this month to highlight how unlikely it is to end up with such combinations - in a move to deter people from over-exuberant gambling.  So far, about 20% of the 5,000 slot machines in the casinos have complied with the rule.

SY, PACKER, HO FORMALIZE MANILA CASINO DEAL Dow Jones Wire

The Sy group has formally entered into an agreement with casino billionaires James Packer and Lawrence Ho for a US$1-billion gaming venture in Manila.  Belle Corp said it and its wholly owned subsidiary, PremiumLeisure and Amusement Inc., signed a cooperation agreement with MPEL for the development of a casino and entertainment resort within the 120-hectare Entertainment City.  The cooperation agreement makes Belle a co-licensee and owner of the resort project with Melco, while Melco will be co-licensee and operator of all of the project's facilities.  The deal will also bring in an additional investment from Melco of "no more than $580 million over the course of the project." 

JAPANESE TOURISTS CANCELLING VISITS TO MACAU Macau Business

Hundreds of Japanese tourists are cancelling trips to Macau.  Tourism agents quoted by Jornal Tribuna de Macau said several Japanese tourists have cancelled their trips.  Information requests about Macau have also dropped by half.  Industry insiders said tourists from Japan are scared of coming here after the violent protests in the mainland against Tokyo following the territorial dispute with Beijing over the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands.  Visitor arrivals from Japan decreased by 0.9% YoY in September, to 35,300, official data shows.