SJM sees better gambling revenue in Macau in 2010

Investors have been focused on the health of the company's 88-year-old chairman, who has been hospitalised since early August after undergoing brain surgery to remove a blood clot.

SJM Chief Executive Ambrose So told Reuters that the company's chairman, Stanley Ho, was stable and making a steady recovery, as the firm unveiled a us$ 193.5 million casino in the enclave. “believe Macau gaming next year will be better than 2009 as China's economy continues to grow," So said.

SJM, the casino flagship of Macau tycoon Stanley Ho, had an overall share of about 34 % of Macau's gambling market in November and operates 21 of Macau's 34 casinos. Last week, Melco Crown Entertainment told Reuters in an interview that casino revenue in Macau could rise 20 to 25 % by the end of 2010 from 2009 levels.

Since 2004, Macau has more than doubled the number of casinos, transforming itself from a sleepy former Portuguese colonial backwater into a Las Vegas-style gambling haven, following a 2002 move to end a four-decade casino monopoly held by Ho and open the market to U.S. marquee names such as Las Vegas Sands, Wynn Resorts.

The company's latest property, the 32,000 square metre Casino Oceanus, which opened Tuesday, is aimed at the mass market and features more than 260 tables and over 560 slot machines.