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There are foreign companies still interested in investing in an integrated resort (IR) project in Japan if such opportunity arises, says Japanese scholar Toru Mihara (pictured) in an interview with GGRAsia.“I think there are some foreign investors that are still interested in some regional markets, such as Hokkaido or Okinawa. Some companies still have offices in Japan, and they remain active there,” he stated.Mr Mihara is a prominent commentator on Japan’s own casino legalisation process, and is chairman of a Japan body called the N... more

On Tuesday, nearly a week ahead of mainland China’s five-day Labour Day holiday season, some luxury hotels in Macau casino resorts were already indicating they had no rooms available for booking on the relevant nights.That is according to checks of the hotels’ own reservation sites by GGRAsia.China’s State Council has designated this year’s Labour Day holiday season on the mainland as May 1, a Wednesday, to May 5, a Sunday, inclusive. May 1 is also known as ‘May Day’. As of Tuesday this week, 11 out of 32 local luxury hotel towers –... more

All 32 legislators present at a Wednesday plenary session of Macau’s Legislative Assembly (pictured in a file photo) voted in favour of a second and final reading to a government-proposed gambling crimes bill. It explicitly targets the ‘multiplier’ practice as an illegal operation of games of fortune, and bans operation or promotion of unauthorised online gambling, as well as criminalising gambling-related unlicensed money exchange.The measure, called the “Law to Combat Crimes of Illegal Gambling”, was first outlined by the governmen... more

The Macau foreign exchange (FX) tout “crackdown” appears to have “stabilised”, with “investors’ concerns likely overdone” regarding the city’s casino sector, says a Tuesday report from brokerage CLSA Ltd. The institution observed that Macau’s August gross gaming revenue (GGR) had grown month-on-month. That data point was subsequent to publicity about enhanced enforcement in Macau and on the Chinese mainland against unlicensed touts that linger near Macau casinos and offer to change Chinese yuan into Hong Kong dollars and vice versa.... more