Macau’s gambling revenue hit a record monthly high in October, official figures showed Thursday, as wealthy mainland Chinese fuelled growth in the world’s biggest gaming hub during a holiday week.
Gambling revenue hit 27.70 billion patacas ($3.5 billion) in October, up 3.2 percent from 26.85 billion patacas in the same month last year, according to statistics on the official Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau website.
Accumulated gross revenue for the first 10 months of the year stood at 251.01 billion patacas, up 13.5 percent from the same period in 2011.
The October figures surpassed the previous monthly high, recorded last October, showing the continuing strength of the local gaming industry.
The former Portuguese colony of Macau, the only part of China where casino gambling is legal, overtook Las Vegas as the world’s gaming capital in terms of revenue after the sector was opened up to foreign competition in 2002.
Six firms are licenced to operate casinos in Macau, which was handed back to Beijing in 1999.
Casino operators have plans to build new multi-billion-dollar resorts on Macau’s Cotai Strip, a former swamp which has been reclaimed to transformed into Asia’s glittering gambling hub.
Macau gambling revenue hits all-time monthly high
