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Two casinos remain closed in Macau as grace period ends


At the end of the 30-day grace period for Macau’s casinos to reopen, the government has announced that two properties will remain closed and that about 80 percent of the table capacity is now operational. 

The two casinos that are closed are: Casino Taipa, at the Regency Art Hotel in Taipa; and Casino Macau Jockey Club, also in Taipa.

Casino Taipa – which had already returned to operations subsequent to the market reopening from 20 February onward – has now closed again, with effect from 3pm today. This is because the Regency Art Hotel has been designated as a quarantine venue to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus. Casino Macau Jockey Club is staying closed because its management wishes to do renovations.

Macao’s casinos currently have an aggregate of approximately 5,400 gaming tables in operation, representing about 80 percent of the city’s table tally.

The government shut down the casinos on Feb. 4 for a 15-day period to curb the spread of the coronavirus. Despite the casinos reopening stringent safety measures will remain in place, with mandated gaps between tables and gaming equipment and more frequent cleaning and disinfection. 

Gross gambling revenue tumbled 87 percent in February and is on track for a further drop of about 80 percent in March, according to analysts’ estimates. Visitation is still running at about 10 times less than normal levels due to travel restrictions on Mainland China. This week, Macau also closed its borders to all international travellers after two imported cases of the disease. 

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