@@ -1,1 +1,1 @@ - +Macau boasts a casino industry bigger than Las Vegas<br> <br>Macau casino stocks slumped on Monday as the Chinese gaming hub battled a Covid-19 outbreak that has prompted tightened social distancing restrictions and mass testing.<br> <br>The sector has been hammered by the pandemic, with vital tourism revenues wiped out by some of the world's harshest measures to tackle the virus -- including tough border controls, weeks-long quarantines and targeted lockdowns.<br> <br>Case numbers are small by global comparison, with only 34 found so far in citywide mass testing according to local media, but the outbreak sent casino stocks tumbling.<br> <br>Sands China fell as much as eight percent while Wynn Macau dropped more than seven percent, though both partially recovered.<br> <br>A Bloomberg Intelligence index of Macau's six major casino operators fell as much as five percent, taking their total losses this year to 28 percent.<br> <br>The virus has been kept largely under control in Macau but the government said a chain of transmission discovered on Saturday posed an "extremely high" risk of community transmission.<br> <br>Citywide mass testing, expected to take place over 48 hours until Tuesday, had covered almost 340,000 people by Monday morning.<br> <br>Government offices and banks are shut, dining in has been suspended at restaurants, school lessons have been cancelled and residents have been asked to stay at home.<br> <br>Macau's casinos usually account for about 80 percent of government revenue and more than half of the city's gross domestic product, with nearly a fifth of the working population employed by the industry.<br> <br>Almost all gambling is forbidden in mainland China but it is permitted in Macau, a former Portuguese colony that boasts a casino industry bigger than Las Vegas.<br> <br>The pandemic is not the only challenge the sector is facing.<br> <br>Chinese President Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign has seen increased scrutiny of big-spending gamblers and corrupt officials who might travel to Macau to [https://Www.Accountingweb.Co.uk/search?search_api_views_fulltext=launder%20money launder money].<br> <br>In September Macau announced plans to criminalise underground banking in the industry and place government representatives on the boards of casino operators to oversee their dealings.<br> <br>However, when the new rules were unveiled at the beginning of this year they were less punishing than expected.<br> <br>The six major casino operators are all required to bid again for their licences this year as they have [https://www.deer-digest.com/?s=expired expired].<br><br><br>adverts.addToArray({"pos":"inread_player"})Advertisement<br><br>In the event you adored this short article in addition to you wish to get more info about [https://corinspired.com/ https://corinspired.com/] i implore you to stop by our own web site.