Macau casinos offer discounts to lure players

“The casino has reopened and is running normally now,” a front desk employee at the MGM Macau said in report published by The South China Morning Post. “Electricity and water supplies have also resumed. But for the meantime, restaurants are not yet opened,” he pointed out.

The Parisian's casino had resumed business, but the hotel had stopped accepting reservations until September 1, a staff member said.

According to local media some casinos have also started to offer heavy discounts on room rates and fine dining to compensate for economic losses.

“Hato hit during the peak season for hotels and casinos,” said Lei Kuok-keong, a local leader at the labour advocacy group Forefront of Macau Gaming and director of the gaming guild New Macau Association.

Macau's casino moguls have come out in force to donate funds toward the city’s reconstruction. Galaxy’s founder Lui Che-woo committed 60 million patacas from his company and family foundation. Pansy and Lawrence Ho, children of tycoon Stanley Ho Hung-sun, also pledged a combined 60 million patacas from their MGM, MGM China and Melco Resoirts & Entertainment towards relief work. About 500 volunteers at Melco also joined efforts to clean up the city.

About 150,000 people work in the hotels and gaming-related sectors in Macau, accounting for roughly 40 per cent of the city’s workforce.