Casinos- diversificação

ab25

The idea of university–industry partnership is a good one raised by Sam, but this requires authorities and leaders from all Macau universities to sit down and discuss with the government and private-sector corporations of not only Macau but also the mainland, notably those in the Greater Bay Area, how scientific research will be conducted, how Chinese medicine will be “westernised” and advanced further through innovative research, and how new patents will be developed in the South China region. Furthermore, Sam Hou Fai has encouraged Macau’s casino concessionaires to invest in the In-Depth Cooperation Zone, but the details will have to be delineated so that the mobilisation of private-sector corporations will be truly effective in Macau’s quest for economic diversification.

Eighth, given that a huge portion of Macau’s revenues still comes from the gaming industry, casino capitalism will remain the mainstay of the local economy. As such, it is wise for Sam Hou Fai’s policy address to continue emphasising the importance of maintaining Macau’s culture, historical heritage, unique food products, and of retaining its vital role in China’s Belt and Road Initiative. Tourists from mainland China and other parts of the world will continue to be attracted by Macau’s casino hub, although the official Chinese perspective is to dilute its features away from casino capitalism to a more diversified economic developmental scenario.

https://www.macaubusiness.com/opinion-sam-hou-fais-maiden-policy-address-and-the-politics-of-reform-in-macau/

abr25

It remains to be seen exactly what Macau’s new leadership’s stance is towards the gaming industry, but the gaming hub’s Chief Executive did himself few favors in assuaging concerns about how in tune he is with the sector when facing questions from the legislature yesterday. Some issues were debated, but many questions remain.  (AGB)

Diversify but don’t ignore casino operators

While acknowledging that gaming revenue contributions to the government account for approximately 80 percent of the total annual coffer contributions, the executive did further the narrative that the diversification of the economy was necessary. However, he did not seem overly confident in the ramp up of these nascent industries in regards to their eventual contribution towards the government’s bottom line, at least in the short term.

The official stressed that, if gaming revenues this year do not meet expectations, the government will fall into a deficit, an acknowledgment that was uncommon to see from the previous administration.

It will be interesting to see how the SAR’s Secretary for Economy and Finance further outlines these details, and expected measures of mitigation, in his own follow up to the Policy Address.

The Chief Executive was firm in assuring that the responsibilities of each government department would fall firmly on the department and the Secretary who leads it. This was not exclusive to the Secretariat for Economy and Finance.

Given the non-political background of Macau’s new leader, this could be seen as a positive, distributing and mandating responsibility across the various departments.

The official did highlight the increased tendency for saving in mainland China – seen even before the US tariff announcements, noting that the “Chinese population has a sense of risk”. This has been evidenced by the increased number of tourists in Macau but the decreased average of spending overall.

https://agbrief.com/intel/deep-dive/15/04/2025/macau-ce-answers-legislators-questions-economy-diversification-land-labor-and-satellite-casinos/

Fev25 

a scathing critique of Macao’s reliance on casinos

Macao’s leader issued a strongly worded warning against the SAR’s continued over-reliance on its gambling industry on Wednesday, bemoaning the “monotonous structure of visitor sources, the imbalance in the government’s tax revenue and the lack of innovation” that he believes casinos have led to, Inside Asian Gaming reports.

Speaking at the first plenary session of the 2025 Economic Development Commission, Chief Executive Sam Hou Fai described these as “major problems that still need to be improved and resolved.” He added that he didn’t see any quick fixes on the horizon, and expected “the structural problem of ‘one industry dominates’ will continue for some time.”

Sam also highlighted the threat of increasing regional competition in the casino industry, with Thailand set to legalise casinos in the near future. While Beijing has expressly warned its citizens – by far Macao’s biggest pool of punters – to shy away from gambling overseas, many shrug off the advice. It appears unlikely that Thai casinos will ignore the lucrative mainland market, making the kingdom a formidable competitor for Macao.

https://macaonews.org/news/business/macau-sam-hou-fai-casinos/

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 out24  (Risk analyst predicts tough times for casinos)

A top Hong Kong-based security consultancy predicts Macao’s incoming government will intensify the push for economic diversification at the expense of foreign-owned gaming concessionaires, their investors and the myriad of downstream businesses reliant on the gaming industry in the SAR.

Steve Vickers Associates (SVA) issued a memo on Monday recommending that boards and executives with investments in Macao (as well as Hong Kong and the mainland) stay alert to growing risks associated with state intervention and measures introduced to prevent capital flight. SVA urged potentially impacted companies to “anticipate threats” in order to mitigate any potential losses.

The firm claimed that Macao’s newly-elected chief executive designate, Sam Hou Fai, would “likely expedite measures forcing the six casino concessionaires to diversify and contribute more to social causes” in response to policy pressures from Beijing. 

https://macaonews.org/news/business/macau-risk-assessment-steve-vickers-associates-macao-sam-hou-fai/

set24

Sam Hou Fai, a former judge widely tipped to become the next leader of Macau, has been keen to promote the benefits of diversification and decry the "barbaric expansion" of the gaming industry and its "large negative impact on the city".

ãgo24

The press conference lasted for about an hour, with Sam stressing that the Macau SAR Government has to answer the question of appropriate diversification of Macau’s economy, and that there is no turning back as Macau must continue to develop in an appropriate and diversified manner. “After the return of sovereignty, Macau held an open tender for the gaming industry, and the tourism and gaming industry developed rapidly afterwards, but for a period of time, it developed in an uncontrolled manner,” he said.

13/9/24 In a previous candidacy announcement last month, Sam Hou Fai took a critical tone, pointing out that the gaming industry had experienced “barbaric expansion” and had a significant negative impact on society. The statement has caused some speculation about whether he will implement changes to gaming policy in the future.