Macao's pillar gaming industry is experiencing a new boom as revenue rose 46 percent in the first half of the year, authorities said yesterday.

 

Gross gaming and betting receipts, comprising casino games, horse and greyhound races and a string of lotteries, reached 37.97 billion patacas (US$4.75 billion) at the end of June, the government-run Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau reported.

 

The casino business alone accounted for more than 98 percent of the industry's gross revenues between January and June, the report showed.

 

The figures confirmed earlier reports that casino games are on the rise and other forms of gambling are declining.

 

Bets on greyhound and horse racing, soccer, basketball and lotteries declined 34 percent on year in the second quarter, totaling 1.84 billion patacas.

 

The first-half figure amounted to 3.57 billion patacas, a drop of 32.4 percent from 2006.

 

In the casino sector, slot machines took in 76.3 percent more revenue in the first half.

 

In addition, the share of slot machines in the local gaming market, in terms of gross receipts, rose from 3.4 percent in the first half of 2006 to 4.1 percent in the first six months of this year.

 

The card game baccarat generated 85 percent of the gaming industry's gross receipts in the first half.

 

Most of the 18 games of chance offered by Macao's 26 casinos experienced double-digit growth in the period. Roulette receipts increased the most at 66-percent.

 

In the meantime, the number of gaming tables rocketed to 3,102, a year-on-year rise of 58.8 percent.

 

(Shanghai Daily July 19, 2007)