Over-reliance on gaming tourism “fully exposed,” says Macau CEO
Macau CEO Ho Iat Seng believes the region should be "soberly aware" of the challenges it faces during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Macau Government will spend over MOP50bn ($6.27bn) in response to the pandemic, with the region reporting 45 cases of COVID-19 to date.
But having banned entry from mainland China, Macau – which generates the vast majority of its tax revenue from gaming – has also suffered significant falls in gross gaming revenue.
Indeed, Macau casinos saw an 80% year-on-year drop in March revenue to MOP5.26bn.
Seng said: “We should be soberly aware of the problems and challenges facing the development of Macau.
“[The coronavirus has] fully exposed the vulnerability and huge risks of the Macau economy’s over-reliance on gaming tourism.
“This epidemic has once again exposed the problems and risks of Macau’s economic structure.”
Similar suggestions that the region is too reliant on gaming revenue have previously stemmed from within Macau.
However, with the jurisdiction boasting the biggest gambling hub in the world, considerably outperforming even Las Vegas for some time now, it is undeniably difficult for Macau to diversify.
Rather than moving away from gaming, investor Jason Ader recently told Gambling Insider the region should legalise online gambling to offset the recent decline in casino revenue.
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