Macau’s misfortune could be the Philippines’ gain as more gamblers from Mainland China seek entertainment off the beaten track. Mogul Andrew Tan, head of Resorts World and co-owner with Genting of the Travellers International Hotel Group, says the country is well on its way to becoming a destination for international gamblers?elite players and mass-market customers alike.
“Our definition of VIP is not as big as in Macau,” Tan told the website Interaksyon.com. “The foreigners who come and play or visit our casino, they are not the very high rollers. These are just regular customers. That traveler market is still growing with so many hotels being built now … In the industry, all of us have been building quite a number of hotels, giving a lot of room and opportunity for more tourists to come.”
Tan’s Alliance Global Group Inc. and the Genting Group of Malaysia own Travellers International Hotel Group, which runs Resorts World Manila, the country’s first integrated casino resort. The partners are now building Bayshore City Resorts World in Entertainment City.
“The Philippines will now become a destination because it has hotel rooms and attractions to attract more tourists,” Tan said.
Back in Macau, the government is not heedless of a 2.6 percent annual drop in gaming revenue and seven straight months of decline. Secretary for Economy and Finance Lionel Leong told the Macau Business Daily Macau can expect to see the slump continue for the first half of 2015. “This reflects a new situation for Macau’s overall economy,” said Leong. “The government will closely observe its development.”
He echoed the stance of Chinese President Xi Jinping, who has called for Macau to diversify its economy so it is less reliant on one industry. “It points out a new direction for enterprises’ business concepts and for the workforce’s career planning,” Leong said.
Hong Kong’s casino industry is also in freefall, according to Forbes. Year-over-year revenues started sliding in June 2014, and declined a full 47 percent over the course of the year. As in Macau, analysts expect the slump to continue “well into this year” as high rollers from the Chinese Mainland decamp to destinations far from the prying eyes of the Chinese government, such as Manila, Phnom Penh, South Korea, Melbourne and Las Vegas.
As a result of the slowdown, several junket companies are already selling property in Macau, and some 40 to 50 VIP rooms in Macau could shut their doors in the coming months. That could be good news for the Philippines.
Lawrence Ho, co-chairman of Melco Crown, which is developing City of Dreams in Manila, may have said it best: “We’re very happy with Manila. When other people were not so positive on it, now Manila is turning out to be pretty great.”
