Gaming taxes collected by the Macau government rose 13.4 percent in the first three quarters, as Chinese tourists flocked to the city following the opening of its first Las Vegas style casino in two-and-a-half years.
Direct gaming taxes collected from the city's six licensed operators rose to 14.19 billion patacas (US$1.77 billion) in the first three quarters, compared with 12.51 billion patacas a year earlier, according to statistics released on the Financial Services Bureau Web site.
Casino companies have been investing in the former Portuguese colony since its government opened its gaming market to foreign operators, betting Chinese gamblers will flock to the only place casino gaming is legal in the country. Wynn Resorts Ltd launched a US$1.2 billion hotel-casino on Sept. 6, and Las Vegas Sands Corp opened the city's first Las-Vegas style casino in 2004.
On Thursday, a Hong Kong company became the first Asian firm to open a US-style casino in gambling haven Macau, fast becoming the Las Vegas of the east.
Starworld Hotel, the flagship of the Galaxy group, is the second Las Vegas-style hotel-casino complex to open in the territory. The first, the Wynn Macau was opened last month just metres away from Galaxy's towering new complex.
Macau's century-old gaming market was given a boost in 2001 when the removal of a 40-year gambling monopoly from tycoon Stanley Ho (
With annual gambling receipts expected to near US$7 billion by the end of the year, the city is already believed to have overtaken the earning power of the Las Vegas Strip's casinos.
Such growth -- in excess of 25 percent last year -- has been fuelled by a sudden surge in tourist arrivals since travel restrictions were lowered in China.
The number of visitors to Macau rose 14 percent during China's National Day holiday from Oct.1 to Oct. 7, according to government statistics. Wynn Macau resort took in about US$900 million in chip sales in its first 13 days of operation, the Las Vegas Sun said in an Oct. 1 report, quoting chairman Stephen Wynn.
UNPRECEDENTED PACE: Micron Technology has announced plans to expand manufacturing capabilities with the acquisition of a new chip plant in Miaoli Micron Technology Inc unveiled a newly acquired chip plant in Miaoli County yesterday, as the company expands capacity to meet growing demand for advanced DRAM chips, including high-bandwidth memory chips amid the artificial intelligence boom. The plant in Miaoli County’s Tongluo Township (銅鑼), which Micron acquired from Powerchip Semiconductor Manufacturing Corp (力積電) for US$1.8 billion, is expected to make a sizeable capacity contribution to the company from fiscal 2028, the company said in a statement. It would be an extended production site of Micron’s large-scale manufacturing hub in Taichung, the company said. As the global semiconductor industry is racing to reach US$1 trillion
Singapore-based ride-hailing and delivery giant Grab Holdings Ltd has applied for regulatory approval to acquire the Taiwan operations of Germany-based Delivery Hero SE's Foodpanda in a deal valued at about US$600 million. Grab submitted the filing to the Fair Trade Commission on Friday last week, with the transaction subject to regulatory review and approval, the company said in a statement yesterday. Its independent governance structure would help foster a healthy and competitive market in Taiwan if the deal is approved, Grab said. Grab, which is listed on the NASDAQ, said in the filing that US-based Uber Technologies Inc holds about 13 percent of
ABOVE LEGAL REQUIREMENT: The Ministry of Economic Affairs is prepared if LNG supply is disrupted, with more than the legal requirement of 11 days of inventory Taiwan has largely secured liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies through May and arranged about half of June’s supply, Minister of Economic Affairs Kung Ming-hsin (龔明鑫) said yesterday. Since the Middle East conflict began on Feb. 28, Taiwan’s LNG inventories have remained more than 12 days, exceeding the legal requirement of 11 days, indicating no major supply concerns for domestic gas and electricity, Kung said at a meeting of the legislature’s Economics Committee in Taipei. The ministry aims to increase the figure to 14 days by the end of next year, he said. While one or two LNG or crude oil shipments for May
Taiwan’s food delivery market could undergo a major shift if Singapore-based Grab Holdings Ltd completes its planned acquisition of Delivery Hero SE’s Foodpanda business in Taiwan, industry experts said. Grab on Monday last week announced it would acquire Foodpanda’s Taiwan operations for US$600 million. The deal is expected to be finalized in the second half of this year, with Grab aiming to complete user migration to its platform by the first half of next year. A duopoly between Uber Eats and Foodpanda dominates Taiwan’s delivery market, a structure that has remained intact since the Fair Trade Commission (FTC) blocked Uber Technologies Inc’s
RSS