It’s all sunshine and roses again in the gambling haven of Macau, it seems – this former Portuguese colony, now an autonomous region in the People’s Republic of China, has marked one full calendar year of gain in revenue. This July saw their total gambling profit rise 19% in comparison to July of last year, for a total amount of 150 billion Patacas ($18.6 billion)!
For the past couple of years, the traditionally pro-gambling Macau region, that is a true piece of promised land for gambling enthusiasts in this part of the world, has been struggling to maintain their reputation as such, due to a decline in revenue. However, for the past 12 months, they have gone through a Renaissance of sorts with revenues once again gaining momentum. Those poor figures from before were mainly due to the Chinese government’s laws and reforms to cut down on luxury and extravagant lifestyles, influencing the province, despite it being the only region in China where gambling is legal. However, the worst seems to have passed and the Las Vegas of Asia is back on track again.
Macau is known as the gambling capital of the world – the gambling tradition in this region dates back as far as the mid-19th century, when Portuguese colonists first legalized gambling activities. It is estimated that gambling tourism makes up to 50% of its entire economy, with most of the visitors coming from within close proximity, namely Hong Kong. Today, the region has over 30 casinos and the most famous and largest among them include Casino Lisbon, The Venetian Macao and Casa Real Casino.
Source:
“Macau Continues Rebound in July”, casinolistings.com, August 01, 2017.