Daily Archives: June 3, 2022

People walk in front of Casino Lisboa in Macau, China December 21, 2019. REUTERS/Jason Lee/File Photo

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HONG KONG, June 1 (Reuters) - Plunging casino revenues in Macau, the world's largest gambling hub, are taking a heavy toll on the wider economy, forcing hundreds of businesses to close down and pushing unemployment to its highest level since 2009.

The former Portuguese colony on Wednesday posted one of its worst monthly gambling revenues since September 2020, a week after Macau's government warned that rising job losses and financial strains could trigger social conflicts and destabilise the city's security.

The Chinese special administrative region is the only place in the country where it is legal to gamble in casinos. Heavily reliant on casino taxes, which account for more than 80% of government revenue, Macau has had little success in diversifying its economy.

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"We are the most reliant city in the world on tourism. Of course, we didn't have any other industries to fall back on," said Glenn McCartney, an associate professor at the University of Macau.

"Given that we didn't diversify for 20 years. It isn't going to happen tomorrow. There's no quick fix."

Macau's dependence on gambling has been laid bare since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, with visitation rates in the first quarter dropping more than 80% compared with the same period in 2019 due to COVID-19 travel restrictions.

More than 90% of visitors to Macau typically come from mainland China, which continues to pursue a "zero-COVID" policy.

May gambling revenues dropped 68% year-on-year to 3.3 billion patacas ($400 million), and - while up 25% from April - it remains far off the 26 billion patacas hit in May 2019.

Macau's six casino operators are facing daily revenue losses and accumulating debt as liquidity continues to dry up.

China's moves to stem capital outflows and crack down on the opaque junket industry that is tasked with bringing in high-rollers from the mainland have also hampered gambling revenue.

Cost-cutting and mounting economic losses are evident throughout the tiny territory, home to more than 600,000 people, extending to sectors including retail, industrial and commercial services.

The unemployment rate for local residents has risen to 4.5%, according to the latest government figures, up from 1.8% in 2019.

Citing a tough business environment and gloomy outlook for the high-end gaming segment, the Emperor Entertainment Hotel said in April it would close its casino from June 26.

At least seven other casinos are due to stop operations by mid-year, local media reported.

The Macau Economic Association said the local business climate index will remain "poor" for the coming three months.

In an April report, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned that it would take several years for Macau's economy to return to its pre-pandemic level, with the sharp contraction in activity exposing the city's vulnerability.

Macau's government has urged casinos, which employ tens of thousands of local people, not to fire workers. Instead, some operators have chosen not to renew contracts, or offered unpaid leave or share bonuses instead of giving full salaries.

Cloee Chan, a labour group activist in Macau, said the lack of gamblers, coupled with the closure of VIP parlours and some casinos, posed a major challenge to the local labour market.

"Many workers in the gaming industry are now either under-represented or fired," she said.

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Reporting by Farah MasterEditing by Helen Popper

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Macau's casino losses engulf gambling hub as no quick fix in sight - Reuters

Must the new Gaming Law be passed by 26 June? And must the new concessions be signed by 31 December? Despite that being the prevailing wisdom, the answer to both questions is, Apparently not.

As we all know, the gaming contracts of the six concessionaires will expire at midnight at the end of 26 June this year, and the government has stated the six concessions will be extended until 31 December. The President of the Macau Legislative Assembly Macau, Kou Hoi In, mentioned earlier this year that he hoped the new gaming law would be passed before 26 June, and it is widely said that the new gaming law must be passed on 26 June. But why? Is it possible to pass it later?

In fact, 26 June is not a deadline at all. The new gaming law can definitely be passed later.

The current Law No. 16/2001, formally the Legal Framework for the Operations of Casino Games of Fortune but commonly known as the Macau gaming law does not have an expiration date. The only thing which expires is the right to operate gaming, which is held by the six concessionaires. All six concessionaires have applied to the government to extend their gaming rights until December 31 and are now waiting for approval.

If the new law is not passed on June 26, the six concessionaires can still continue to operate their gaming business under the prevailing law. There is no need to rush through the law before 26 June.

So why has 26 June been apparently set as a deadline for the passage of the new Gaming Law?

When asked by IAG on Friday, the Chairman of the Second Standing Committee of the Macau Legislative Assembly, Andrew Chan Chak Mo, said it was a matter of time.

He pointed out that after the passage of the new Gaming Law, there are many transitional provisions to be dealt with, and the process of open bidding for gambling licenses must be carried out, which he said can only be implemented after the passage of the new Gaming Law presumably so that bidders can understand the legal requirements under which they would be operating in the future.

We have more time

According to Article 13 of the current Gaming Law, the Chief Executive may grant one or more extensions of the casino gaming concessions, for a total of no more than five years. This means that the six concessionaires could see their concessions extended until 2023, or even 2024. This is subject to the approval of the Macau Chief Executive.

Under a maximum extension of five years regime, Galaxy, Melco, Wynn Macau and Sands China still have at least four years to run, while MGM and SJM have at least two years.

However, according to the current government proposals, the new Gaming Law will be passed before 26 June, and the six concessionaires will only be renewed until 31 December, so there is only half a year to carry out the upcoming open tender for the new casino gaming concessions, subsequent contractual negotiations and final execution of the concession contracts obviously a very tight schedule.

The Macau government has enough time to deal with the gaming law and to conduct the open tender. But truth be told the pressure to comply with the 26 June and 31 December dates they have set themselves is merely self-imposed, so that the new regime for the gaming industry in Macau will be in place by 1 January next year.

The upcoming gaming tender will influence the livelihoods of more than 600,000 people, but there are a few months for bidders around the world to prepare. Is that enough time? We have some doubts.

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The Gaming Law must be passed by 26 June and the new concessions by 31 December? Apparently not - IAG - Inside Asian Gaming

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Guangdong will deepen comprehensive economic and trade exchanges and cooperation with Macau, promote a market-oriented and law-based international business environment, improve foreign business investment policies, and further facilitate trade and investment, so as toprovidestronger safeguards and better services for businesses,said Chen Yuehua, deputy director-generalof the Department of Commerce of Guangdong Province, at the Guangdong-Macao economic cooperation promotion conference.

At the conference held on May 26, the latest foreign investment policies of Guangdong werepresented by the Department of Commerce, including ten policies and measures for foreign investment in Guangdong, 12 measures to stabilize foreign investment, preferential policies for multinational corporations (MNCs) to set up regional headquarter in Guangdong, supportive policies for R&D centers, and the regulations on protection of rights and interests of foreign investors in Guangdong Province.

In 2021, the GDPof Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area(GBA)reached12.6 trillion RMB,up by about 23 per cent in the last four years. This also reflects the sustained economic growth of the Greater Bay Area.

I believe that with more concerted efforts, businesses in Guangdong and Macao will seize the opportunities brought by the development of the Greater Bay Area and the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqinand achieve mutual benefit and win-win results, said Yu Yusheng, acting chairman of Macao Trade & Investment Promotion Institute.

Chen also stressed that since the launch of theOutline Development Plan for the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area, the three neighbourshave been giving full play to their own advantages and jointly achieved remarkable results in the development of the GBA.

Besides, there were on-site policy consultation and Q&A session, which were well received by the attendees from Macau business circle.

With an aim to introduce the business environment and investment opportunities in GBA and further deepen the economic cooperation between Guangdong and Macao, the conference attracted more than 150 representatives from commercial associations and enterprises in the two places.

Through policy explanation, business environment presentation, company sharing and matchmaking, as well asbusiness tours, the conference also intends to offer a diversified cooperation and exchanges platform for enterprises in Guangdong and Macao.

The Department of Commerce of Guangdong provinceexpressed that itwill continue strengthening cooperation with Macao, provide better services to Macau businesses, and support more quality products and services from Macau to tap into the market in Chinesemainland for better integration into the overall developmentof thecountry.

In the meantime, it will also promote bilateral investment and economic cooperation in more fields and to a higher level, thus making greater contributions to the development of GBA.

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Guangdong to deepen comprehensive economic ties with Macau - Macau Business

Portugal recorded 47 deaths fromCovid-19 on Wednesday, the highest number of deaths in over 100 days, according to data from thehealthauthority (DGS) released on Thursday.

According to the health authority, on Wednesday, the day26,848 cases of infection by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus were confirmed, and 47 deaths were reported, five more than the previous day.

Portugal had not recorded so many deaths per day fromCovid-19 since17February, when 51 deaths due to the disease were reported.

DGS figures alsoshowedthat in the last two months, when the country entered the sixth wave of the pandemic, 1,455 peoplehaddied fromCovid-19, 592 in April and 863 in May.

According to the latest reportfrom the DGS and the Ricardo Jorge Institute, released on Friday, Covid-19 mortality in Portugal reached 41 deaths in 14 days per million inhabitants, a figure that is about twice the threshold of 20 deaths set by the European Centre for Disease Control (ECDC)andis seeing an upwards trend.

All-cause mortality is above the expected values for the time of year, the document said, which associated this situation with the increase inCovid-19 specific mortality.

Henrique Oliveira, a mathematician at the Higher Technical Institute who is part of the institutions pandemic monitoring working group, estimated that hospitalisations,intensive careadmissions anddeathswould remainhigh until 25 June since the countryhadabout 200,000 people currently infected.

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Portugal: Forty-seven Covid deaths recorded on Wednesday, highest in months - Macau Business

Ten years after Gangnam Style became a global phenomenon, South Korean rapper Psy is living his best life - proud of his greatest trophy and free from the pressure of repeating that unprecedented success.

Uploaded to YouTube on July 15, 2012, the songs wacky music video became a runaway megahit, with its trademark horse-riding dance spawning thousands of imitations, spoofs and spinoffs.

It was the first YouTube video to reach one billion views, and with it Psy attained what K-pop acts before him could not: global recognition.

At the peak of the songs popularity, he was everywhere sharing the stage with Madonna, leading a flash mob in front of the Eiffel Tower, and performing before then US president Barack Obama.

But the success of Gangnam Style was a double-edged sword - with fame came pressure to deliver another huge hit. Psy once described it as one of the most difficult periods of his life.

Things became heavier and harder because every time I (had) to have that kind of strong song, Psy told AFP in an interview last week at his companys headquarters in Gangnam - the posh Seoul district he poked fun at in the track.

I had a huge dependency (on) the song But you know, its 10 years ago, so right now Im really free.

Gangnam Style transformed not only Psys career but the music industry too, demonstrating how an artist not performing in a dominant language such as English could reach international audiences through the internet.

It also prompted a change in how music charts were compiled, making Billboard take YouTube views and streams into account.

K-pop acts are very huge on YouTube, they are getting a lot of views, Psy said.

If Billboard didnt change, it (wouldnt) be that easy, the 44-year-old added.

Psys groundbreaking role has been acknowledged by some of the biggest names in K-pop.

Hes always someone I was grateful for, Suga, a member of hugely popular group BTS, said in a video last month.

With Gangnam Style, he paved the way for K-pop in the United States We were able to follow his footsteps with ease.

Psy, whose real name is Park Jae-sang, was a superstar in South Korea well before Gangnam Style.

He cites Queen as his earliest inspiration - while in middle school, he watched a video of the British bands famous 1986 concert at Wembley.

I thought: I want to be a frontman like him (Freddie Mercury), Psy told AFP.

At that moment, I was not that good at music, not that good a singer I was just a funny dancer.

While attending university in the United States in the late 1990s, he was exposed to what many have described as one of the golden ages of hip-hop, including the music of rappers Tupac Shakur and The Notorious B.I.G.

I literally heard hip-hop every day on the radio, Psy said. I thought: Oh, if I cannot sing that well, I gotta rap. Then I can be the frontman.

Debuting in 2001, he quickly made a name for himself with humorous and explosive stage performances and won multiple awards.

Unusually controversial for a Korean pop star, several of his earlier songs and music videos were given adult ratings because of what state censors deemed bad language.

Since the explosive success of Gangnam Style, Psy has put out three albums.

The latest, Psy 9th, was released in April by P NATION - the record label and artist agency he founded in 2019.

Psy insists he is far from done, dividing his time between his own music and concerts and working with P NATION acts. And Gangnam Style remains a huge source of pride.

Its the biggest and greatest trophy of my life, Psy told AFP. When I do (a) show, it is my strongest weapon.

This was demonstrated at a performance at Korea University in Seoul last week, when a heaving crowd sang along to every word during a high-energy set that included songs from his first album more than two decades ago, as well as his latest one.

The fact that the young audience knows all the words to songs that were released before many of them were even born is not lost on Psy.

These days, (I say to myself): Wow, dude, you are very popular. They love you!

How lucky I am as an artist. Im happier than ever these days.

by Qasim Nauman and Kang Jin-kyu

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10 years after 'Gangnam Style', Psy is happier than ever - Macau Business

Cypriot police said the body of a man was retrieved off the Mediterranean islands western coast Thursday after newly arrived migrants said one among them had fallen overboard.

Police said a group of 44 Syrians including two women and four children were found wandering in the Peyia area north of Paphos.

The migrants told police that a man on the boat they were travelling in had gone missing before they reached the shore.

Authorities launched a rescue operation, and the body of a man was discovered in the waters.

A police official said the body was found after an extensive search using a helicopter, but it had yet to be formally identified.

The missing migrant was reported to be a 24-year-old Syrian.

Police believe the Syrians were smuggled from Turkey and dropped off pre-dawn before the boat departed.

Cyprus has complained that people smugglers have driven a huge rise in asylum seekers landing on its shores from Turkey in recent years.

The small EU state has lobbied Brussels to take action over the disproportionate numbers of asylum seekers it receives.

After being processed, the migrants who arrived on Thursday morning will be transferred to a reception centre outside the capital Nicosia.

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One dead off Cyprus as more than 40 Syrian migrants arrive - Macau Business

Chinas value-added tax (VAT) credit refunds are expected to rise to 1.64 trillion yuan (about 244 billion U.S. dollars) this year, as the country ramped up efforts to reduce enterprises tax burdens and help them tide over difficulties, an official said on Thursday.

More sectors will be able to enjoy VAT credit refunds, including wholesale and retail sales, agriculture, accommodation and catering, Ou Wenhan, an official with the Ministry of Finance, told a press conference, citing a package of measures unveiled by the State Council earlier this week.

The newly added tax refunds are estimated to hit 142 billion yuan, which will enable more market entities to benefit from the tax refund policy and increase their cash flows, Ou said.

Data from the tax authorities showed that Chinas VAT credit refunds from April to the end of May amounted to about 1.34 trillion yuan.

Ou said the ministry and relevant government organs are accelerating the implementation of tax refunds to ensure enterprises, especially micro and small ones can benefit from the policy timely.

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China's VAT credit refunds to hit 1.64 trln yuan - Macau Business

Adnan Abdelrahman shows off the drums he learned to play at age 12. He belongs to Iraqs centuries-old black minority, guardians of musical traditions but relegated to the margins of society.

Centred in the city of Zubair, near Basra in the far south of Iraq, the community has its origins in East Africa.

Like other remote parts of Iraq, Zubair is a place of poverty and decaying public services, where dusty roads are lined with simple cement houses.

While activists denounce the communitys marginalisation, talk of racism or discrimination offends Zubairs inhabitants, who prefer the euphemism dark skin in Arabic to the word black.

Abdelrahman, 56, is a member of one of the popular music troupes that have made Zubair famous throughout the country and in Kuwait, only 30 kilometres (20 miles) away.

Its a profession you inherit, he said, explaining that his uncle sang and his father played the drum. If someone dies, his son takes his place so that the art doesnt disappear.

Equipped with darboukas, tambourines and large goat skin drums, musicians liven up weddings by leading the zaffa, a procession of song and dance to celebrate the bride and groom.

Abdelrahman, who has played for four years in a heritage group sponsored by the culture ministry, said the majority of players are black and added that he does not feel discrimination.

Racism is something we have never seen, he said.

But many activists within the black community disagree, among them 32-year-old Majed al-Khalidy.

Those with dark skin are fifth-class citizens, not even second-class, said Khalidy, who works for an oil company in Basra.

Since the establishment of the Iraqi state, we have not seen anyone from the community occupy a senior position in the state. We have not seen a governor, a minister or a lawmaker.

He said the community faces a high drop-out rate from school, poor job opportunities and offensive language, even from religious clerics, with many people still using the Arabic term slave to designate a black person.

The minority numbers 250,000 to two million people, according to a wide range of informal estimates. Their ancestors came from Kenya, Ethiopia and Sudan, said historian Ibrahim al-Marashi of California State University.

They are centred in Iraqs southern Basra region, where black slaves were brought from East Africa for the backbreaking work of draining the salt marshes east of the city, said Marashi.

In the historical record, the first mention of the community is in 869 CE when they revolted against the Abbasid Caliphate, he said.

Today black Iraqis continue to face systematic discrimination and marginalisation, according to theMinority Rights Group International.

The London-based MRG says in an online report that Iraqs black community suffers disproportionately high illiteracy and unemployment rates and that many cannot find employment other than as labourers or domestic workers.

In a recent sign of progress, a state-run TV news channel hired a young black woman, Randa Abdel Aziz, as a presenter but such steps remain rare.

More change is needed, said Khalidy, the activist.

In a multi-faith, multi-ethnic country, he demanded the inclusion of his community in the quota system which reserves parliament seats for certain minorities, including Christians and Yazidis.

To claim your rights, you have to be close to the decision-makers, he said about a political system where lawmakers can open the doors to all kinds of state largesse, especially public sector jobs.

Saad Salloum, an expert on religious and ethnic diversity, agreed thatdiscrimination is seen at all levels against black Iraqis.

Politically, they have no representation. Socially, certain stereotypes remain rooted in the dominant culture. Economically, the majority live below the poverty line.

The group MRG recalled that after the fall of former dictator Saddam Hussein, black Iraqis began to organise and develop a political consciousness for the first time.

The Free Iraqi Movement, the first group to defend the rights of black Iraqis, was founded in 2007 and encouraged by the election in the United States of Barack Obama as president.

Several members of the movement ran for the 2010 provincial elections in Basra, though none were elected, MRG recounted. In 2013, its founder, Jalal Thiyab, was murdered in the city.

There is still a long way to go to achieve equality for this and all other minorities, said Salloum.

by Tony GAMAL-GABRIEL

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In Iraq, centuries-old black community still on the margins - Macau Business