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Macau casino revenue plunges, govt to rein in fiscal spending

Gambling revenue in Macau dropped 35.5 percent in August from a year earlier, sliding for fifteen months in a row – more evidence of a deepening downturn that prompted the territory’s government to announce on Tuesday it would tighten fiscal spending.

Casino revenues in the world’s biggest gambling hub tumbled to MOP18.6 billion (USD2.3 billion), as China’s slowing economic growth has exacerbated a gambling slump caused by a broader crackdown on conspicuous spending. The drop was not far off analysts’ forecasts of a 36-38 percent decline and was steeper than July’s fall of 34.5 percent, also to MOP18.6 billion.

The figures come on the heels of data showing Macau’s economy, which relies on the territory’s 36 casinos for over 80 percent of tax revenues, shrunk 26.4 percent in the second quarter – its third straight quarter of double-digit declines.

(Source: CNBC)