evenue at casinos in Macau, the only place in China where they are legal, jumped 35 percent to us$ 3.13 billion in January, according to data from Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau. That was higher than the median estimate of us$ 2.95 billion from seven analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News.
“Better infrastructure is drawing more Chinese tourists to Macau, benefiting the whole industry,” said Gary Pinge, an analyst at Macquarie Securities Ltd. He predicts slower growth from February as high-stake gamblers find it harder to raise credit.
Chinese gamblers have fueled growth in the former Portuguese colony, where gambling sales have more than tripled in the past four years. Las Vegas Sands, the world’s biggest casino company by market value, made 60 percent of its revenue in Macau in 2010 after opening its first location in the city in 2004.
Visitors to locations belonging to Sands China, Asian biggest casino operator by market value, rose by 5 percent to 6 percent to more than 1 million during the Lunar New Year holiday from January 23 to 29, the company said.
