Macau’s gaming industry. As the casino industry in Macau faces calls to implement a total smoking ban as soon as possible, a new study has reportedly found that most of gaming floor employees favor allowing gamblers to enjoy tobacco in at least some areas.
The University Of Macau, involved interviews with over 14,300 casino workers with 73% of these directly employed in gaming areas for the investigation developed, the study questioned approximately 13.4% of the people employed in Macau’s 33 casinos and found that some 47% supported allowing gamblers to smoke in specially-ventilated lounges while 13% approved of the status quo in which smoking is permitted in main floor lounges and VIP gaming areas.
“We asked respondents “which of the following proposals do you support the most?” and we gave them three options,” Desmond Lam, an associate professor of hospitality and gaming management at the University Of Macau, reportedly stated during a press conference held at the Macau Tower Convention And Entertainment Centre, “The first option is the full smoking ban, the second is to allow smoking in smoking lounges but ban it in all other areas and the third option is to allow smoking in VIP gaming areas and in smoking lounges but not in the mass areas. What we found was that 40% of our respondents picked option one against 60% that picked the other two options. Forty-seven percent [of the respondents] want to permit smoking in only smoking lounges while 13% would prefer the status quo.” (READ SO MACAU GAMING INDUSTRY INCREASE THE GDP BACK TO GROWTH IN 3Q)
The study additionally found that while 45% of those directly employed on the gaming floors had favored the institution of a full smoking ban, 44% supported the airport-style lounge option versus 11% who approved of the status quo.
(picture of a smoking room on Casino)
The investigation moreover reportedly detailed that about 87% percent of these gaming floor staff felt that air quality in their work environment had improved since operators began the implementation of more stringent smoking measures while Lam was called on to counter criticism that his study had not been independent because it had received funding from Macau’s six casino license holders.
“From my experience with the operators throughout this whole process, they have been professional,” Lam reportedly declared at the press briefing. “So, I can only say [to] trust my judgment. I am bound by my code of conduct. I’m an academic, a scholar and I’m responsible for my field. “My team wants to be independent and [we think] this represents the voices of the respondents. So, the facts are here.”
The government for Macau implemented a partial smoking ban for its casinos in October of 2014 while this was followed a few months later by a declaration from Alexis Tam
A joint statement issued yesterday by Macau’s six licensed casino operators reportedly explained that they were against the imposition of a complete smoking ban although they recognized that “the health and well-being of their [operators’] employees and customers are of paramount importance”.
They also cited an industry-funded investigation conducted in November of 2015 by international audit firm KPMG that allegedly found that the inauguration of a total prohibition could see their annual receipts drop by as much as 20% and lead to a 16% decline in gross domestic product. “We do not find any conflict between tobacco control and the installation of smoking lounges as both serve the purpose of providing a smoke-free environment,”
(non smoking advertising on Venetian casino)
“We believe the air quality of casinos could be further improved with the introduction of more advanced specifications and stringent procedures for the smoking lounges and we hope that, upon [government] approval, a certain grace period will be granted to us for upgrading the existing smoking lounge facilities.” Ambrose So, Chairman for Macau casino operator SJM Holdings Limited.
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The show MGM 2049 will debut at MGM Cotai’s MGM Theater in December, described as a “grand tribute” to the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China and the 25th anniversary of Macau’s return to the Motherland.
However, MGM said the show also aims to act as a catalyst to propel the city’s cultural and entertainment sectors towards new heights. Although residency shows have been few and far between in Macau over the years – a few notable exceptions aside – the Macau SAR Government has outlined its desire to transform Macau into a “City of Performing Arts” as part of its economic diversification initiatives. This, the government has explained, will establish a center of cultural tourism within the Greater Bay Area (GBA) while promoting Chinese culture to the world.
The company is offering over 200 positions for global candidates with on-the-job training opportunities covering several areas, including actors, dancers, art directors, cast managers, performance managers, theater technicians and more.
In preparation for the show, MGM hosted in April the “MGM 2049: Symposium and Global Recruitment Program Kick-off Ceremony” where Zhang and the show’s global creative team came together in Macau to share insights into the residency show’s concept. MGM also kicked off its “Global Recruitment Program”, which offers various job opportunities to aspiring young people interested in pursuing a career in performing arts.
Organized by Global Poker Index Asia and CTP Club, GPI Asia Poker Festival is set to make a triumphant return in Taipei City, Taiwan with ten days of games taking place at the Asia Poker Arena.
Now in its third installment, the annual event takes place from May 17 to 26, 2024. With poker in the country growing in leaps and bounds, larger returns have been promised highlighted by a guaranteed prize pool exceeding 5 Million New Taiwan Dollars (~USD 153,700). Raymond Wong from GPI Asia expressed.
GPI Asia Póker Festival
The Global Poker League kicks off the festivities. It is the most exciting Teams Event introduced in Asia featuring a NTD $300,000 (~USD $9,200) guarantee. Now in its seventh edition, the three-day event will see teams compete in various formats and in two variants – No Limit Hold’em and Pot Limit Omaha. Buy in is NTD $20,000 (~USD $615) per team.
Each team is made up of four players – 1 captain and 3 players. In addition to the cash prize, the winning team will receive THM Championship Taiwan seats worth NTD $7,000 per member.
HSBC Global Research predicts that MGM China, Wynn Macau, Galaxy, and Sands China will pay dividends in 2024, while Melco and SJM are likely to withhold dividends.
In a recent report on HSBC Global Investment Summit 2024 key takeaways, the financial services agency said that Macau’s gaming demand remains healthy, while gaming operators “remain committed to shareholder returns”. Analysts Charlene Liu, Jessie Lu, and Lauren Cai maintain a ‘buy’ rating for MGM China and Galaxy, noting that both operators observed positive trends across all business segments, with notable upticks in VIP segment.
Macau gaming stocks remain intact, supported by a steady daily gross gaming revenue.
Earlier in March, MGM China announced a final dividend of HKD0.243 per share and a special dividend of HKD0.104 per share for 2023. Similarly, Wynn Macau declared a final dividend of HKD0.075 per share for the same fiscal year.
“With growing offerings of non-gaming events of a different nature, both[operators] expect to see travelers return more often to Macau and the seasonality trend to smoothen out,” the analysts said.
Thailand’s Ministry of Finance has been appointed lead agency to consider a House committee study recommending the legalization of casino gaming but will work with 16 other agencies in doing so, local media reports.
Deputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat, who chairs the House committee, said earlier that the complexes would create jobs, boost tourism, and curb illegal gambling. He expected the complexes to generate 40-50 billion baht of revenue annually. After the plan is greenlighted, a policy-level committee will be established to supervise the project, to be chaired by the Prime Minister, he said.
Thailand’s National Assembly to debate introducing casinos on March 28
An administration-level committee will then be formed, comprised of ministers and executives from related agencies to consider each aspect of the project in detail.
The 16 other agencies named include the ministries of Tourism and Sports, Social Development and Human Security, Higher Education Science Research and Innovation, Agriculture and Cooperatives, Transport, Interior, Justice, Labour, Culture, Education, Public Health and Industry.
The study itself recommends imposing a 17% tax on gross gaming revenue – making it one of the lowest tax regimes in the region – with locals to be required to pay an entry levy of an amount yet to be determined. License duration would be set at an initial 20 years and then renewable every five years, while the larger casino complexes would require a minimum investment of US$2.7 billion.
The Office of the Council of State, the National Economic and Social Development Council, the National Office of Buddhism and the Royal Thai Police will also be consulted.
In march, a total of 36.301 billion yuan of lottery tickets were sold nationwide, a year-on-year decrease of 5.509 billion yuan or 13.2%. Among them, the sales of welfare lottery institutions were 12.632 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 899 million yuan, a decrease of 6.6%; the sales of sports lottery institutions were 23.669 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 4.610 billion yuan, a decrease of 16.3%. This is mainly because the market was closed during the Spring Festival holiday in February this year.
Cumulatively from January to February, a total of 93.865 billion yuan in lottery tickets were sold nationwide, an increase of 18.832 billion yuan or 25.1% year-on-year.
Among them, the sales of welfare lottery institutions were 32.322 billion yuan, an increase of 7.950 billion yuan or 32.6% year-on-year; the sales of sports lottery institutions were 61.543 billion yuan, an increase of 10.882 billion yuan or 21.5% year-on-year.
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