Category Archives: Macau

Go-karting is continuing to gain a following in Cuba, with the sports competition circuit returning after a two-year hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

At the Playa El Salado go-kart track in the municipality of Caimito, Artemisa province, about 40 kilometers from Havana, karting fans meet at weekends to test their skills behind the wheel on the 1.2 kilometer circuit.

Among them is Abel Valdes, who started karting around 30 years ago. He told Xinhua he has to import everything from tires to spare parts.

We dont always fix them, we struggle, you can see it here. The spirit of the people is good. We fight to be able to drive, which is what we want, he said minutes before entering the track.

Ruben Cantillo started karting at the age of eight and now pursues his hobby while also working as a mechanic, running his own garage in the municipality of La Lisa.

We are making every effort, almost superhuman, we would say, so that karting stays afloat and can have the boom it had in previous years, he told Xinhua.

Cantillo added that he had thought about quitting, but it was difficult to do so because his family was one of the founders of the sport in Cuba in the 1970s.

The popularity of karting in Cuba is on the rise, with new drivers like 17-year-old Pablo Raul Nascianceno, who started racing this year after passing a preparation course for young drivers, eager to unleash their adrenaline.

My passion for motor racing and karting in general began when I was little. It is the motor sport that can be done here. My biggest goal is Formula 1 on the big international circuits, he said.

According to official sources, the island currently has around 200 go-karts and karting enthusiasts from all over the island turn out for the annual Cocomar Cup, held at the Caimito track.

Angel Luis Amador, president of the working group for the development of karting in the province of Artemisa, told Xinhua that there is a local development project underway to improve the infrastructure of the kart track in Caimito and to further promote the sport.

We have the Grand Final in December. In addition, we are qualifying referees for our competitions. Karting is part of Cubas sporting identity, he said.

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Cuba works to keep sport of karting alive - Macau Business

Chinas slowing economy has left millions of young people fiercely competing for an ever-slimming raft of jobs and facing an increasingly uncertain future.

Official data released this month showed one in five young people in Chinese cities was out of work in July more than three times the national average and the highest recorded since January 2018.

Nearly 11 million graduates entered Chinas bleak job market this summer with the economy growing at 0.4 percent in the second quarter, the weakest in two years.

Zhao Yuting, 22, told AFP companies were reluctant to hire as the economy cools and that experienced workers were now jostling for entry-level jobs, elbowing out green hands such as her.

Since graduating in July, she submitted her CV to dozens of companies.

Only a handful called her back for an interview, only to turn her down saying she lacked experience.

Armed with a degree in English, Zhao thought she could earn a living as a tutor until she found full-time work.

But recent crackdowns on the tech and education sectors, which usually absorb fresh talent, have evaporated such jobs.

Ive been job hunting for two or three months but the prospects of being hired look slim, said Zhao, who has been forced to move back in with her parents while she hunts for work.

The longer it takes, the greater the pressure.

Analysts blame a slowing economy crippled by Covid lockdowns, as well as the large cohort entering the labour force during the graduating season in July and August, for the slim prospects facing Chinas youth.

Official data does not track unemployment among rural youth, and the real jobless population could be more than double the official number, estimated Zhuang Bo, an economist at research group TS Lombard.

Blue-collar workers, too, are struggling to find work as growth in the manufacturing and construction sectors cools.

The reality is more serious than what the data shows, said Ho-fung Hung, who specialises in Chinas political economy at Johns Hopkins University.

If the problem continues without remedy, it will easily spread social disorders.

At a job fair in the tech hub Shenzhen, long lines of anxious parents and young graduates waited for a chance to chat with recruiters.

But headhunters at the fair said they were cherry-picking graduates from top universities, because only a few positions were available.

My goal was to work in Shenzhen, in Chinas Silicon Valley, Luo Wen, a computer science graduate, told AFP.

But after more than four months of searching, Im ready to work even in a smaller city, for less pay.

Graduates who managed to find work this year were offered salaries that were on average 12 percent less than last year, data from online recruitment firm Zhaopin showed.

And while some job seekers were lowering their ambitions, others were biding their time pursuing further studies.

Experts warned that this may lead to degree inflation, where employers demand higher and higher qualifications for jobs that do not necessarily require them.

Analysts blamed government policies that saw a rapid rise in college students over the past decade as the economy failed to accommodate more knowledge workers.

The pandemic and lockdowns simply aggravated the problem, Hung said.

The government has pledged to shore up employment by offering tax relief for small businesses and more start-up funding.

Premier Li Keqiang has said Chinas employment crisis is complex and grave and called on state-owned companies to step up to stabilise the economy.

And as growth in the private sector slows, job seekers have flocked to cram schools to prepare for highly competitive civil service exams.

A record-breaking two million people signed up for the national civil service exam last fall.

A recent survey by 51job, one of Chinas biggest job search services, found that 40 percent of respondents preferred stable state jobs over corporate careers.

But for Zhao, who cannot afford to study further and does not have the connections to secure a government job, few options remain.

I feel that I cant see the future, she said.

I havent made any progress. Its miserable.

By Poornima Weerasekara

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China's jobless youth left in the lurch - Macau Business

The 30thanniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and South Korea on August 24, 2022 was marked by celebrations, active engagement from both sides, challenges and opportunities for the two countries in the coming years.

First, the Chinese President Xi Jinping exchanged congratulatory messages with his South Korean counterpart Yoon Suk-yeol on August 24. President Xi remarked that Sino-South Korean have been developing quickly due to the mutual respect and trust from both sides, the accommodation of each others core interests, and the enhancement of understanding through communications. Moreover, both countries, according to Xi, adopt the principles of openness and inclusiveness, safeguarding regional peace and stability, promoting regional economic development, and preserving the basic norms in dealing with international relations. All these are valuable assets that both sides, President Xi said, should cherish.

President Xi also expressed his desire that both sides can maintain good friendly and neighborly relations, consolidate strategic communications and focus on cooperation.

On August 9, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met the South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin in Qingdao. Park Jin said that the South Korean side insists on denuclearization in the Korean Peninsula, pointing to the unprecedented threat to regional peace, and hoping that the Chinese side can play a constructive role of fostering dialogue with North Korea. Park Jin appealed to China to attach importance to maintain strategic communication, expressing his hope that President Xi would be able to visit South Korea. Park Jin also appealed to the need for stability in logistical supplies an indication that the South Korean side was worried about Chinas technology policy and the impact of its rivalry with the US.

In response to Park Jins concerns, Wang Yi said that the Sino-South Korean relations had undergone winds and rainfall, that both sides remain safe neighbors coexisting with each other as necessary partners, and that both sides should insist on independence and autonomy, non-interference from outside, continuous openness, mutual respect and equality, multilateralism and the adherence to the UN Charter.

One big challenge in Sino-South Korean relations is the Chinese concern about the deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THADD) anti-missile system in South Korea a defensive measure which have damaged their relationships since 2017. China is deeply concerned about its national security threat in the face of the THADD system, but South Korea has been aided by the US to deter the North Korean military threat.

As long as the principle of deterrence is used in dealing with national security in the Korean Peninsula, the relations between China, South Korea, US and North Korea are complex. North Korea is keen to develop and maintain its strong military, including the testing and development of its nuclear weapons. South Korea and the US see North Korea as a serious military threat. China as a friendly neighbor of North Korea can play the role of being a middleman between Pyongyang on the one hand and South Korea and the US on the other hand.

On August 5, the South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol did not meet the Speaker of the US House of Representatives Nancy Pelosi due to his scheduled vacation, shortly after her politically provocative visit to Taiwan. President Yoons gesture appeared to avoid antagonizing China at a politically sensitive time although he had a 40-minute phone discussion with Pelosi. South Korea was sensitive to the way in which the US tackles the issue of Taiwan.

However, in the era of a new Cold War in East Asia where the US is competing with China in economic and military spheres, a recent move made by South Korea to join the US-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework and Chip 4 triggers Chinas sensitivity. The recent global shortages of semiconductor have made the US President Joe Biden and his think tank propose forming a Chips Alliance composed of South Korea, Japan and Taiwan. China, however, sees this Chip 4 Alliance as a pro-American alliance that threatens its security interests.

Ideologically, South Korea cherishes universal values such as democracy, freedom and human rights like the US. The South Korean Consul General in Hong Kong, Baek Yong-chun, has recently remarked that Hong Kong must continue its position as an open and an intermediary trading hub different from mainland China to maintain its international appeal. A free and open business environment in Hong Kong is essential for international business, according to Baek, who skillfully avoided mentioning democracy and human rights in Hong Kong, which has to some extent been mainlandized in the recent years after years of political turmoil and struggles.

Consul General Baek added that if Hong Kong were the same as China, then the territory would have no rationale to exist a remark implying that he was quite concerned about the extent of mainlandization of Hong Kong.

In fact, public opinion in South Korea has shown that more young people have developed negative attitudes toward China. A poll demonstrated that 80 percent of the South Koreans have engendered negative sentiments on China. This finding is perhaps not surprising because of a very different political culture in South Korea and the widespread international perception that the rise of China has been marked by its assertiveness in the diplomatic, political, economic and military spheres.

Perhaps fortunately, the South Korean foreign policy is made and driven by political elites, career diplomats and Sinologists who understand how to deal with China skillfully, tactfully and assertively if necessary.

In early August, it was reported that Chinese officials attempted to exert pressure on the South Korean side to observe three promises made by the previous Moon Jae-in government, namely the promises of not participating in the THAAD system, not adding any new THAAD anti-missile system, and not promoting the military alliance between South Korea, US and Japan. However, the South Korean media reported that the South Korean officials in Beijing argued that these were not promises made by the Moon government.

During the celebration of the 30thanniversary of Sino-South Korean relations, the Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi attended a celebration event in Beijing with Chung Jae-ho, the South Korean ambassador to China. They both read the congratulatory messages from their presidents. Wang interestingly called on both sides to synergize developmental strategies by deepening cooperation in areas such as high-tech manufacturing, big data and green economy. He added that both sides should oppose decoupling or severing supply chains, safeguard the free trade system, and jointly maintain the openness and inclusiveness of industrial supply chains.

Wangs remarks clearly attempted to calm the concerns about whether Chinas economic policies might turn more self-protective. Recent reports on China have pointed to the continuation of economic pragmatism.

Perhaps more innovative efforts at developing an East Asian Free Trade Economic Region, which can be considered and made on the basis of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, and which is composed of China, Japan and South Korea, would bring about peace and stability in the long run.

Grasping the chance of celebrating the 30thanniversary of bilateral relations between China and South Korea, the Korean Unification Minister Kwon Young-se met Chinas top ambassador in Seoul, Xing Haiming. Kwon stressed that his ministry would closely communicate with the Chinese side to push ahead with the policies of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration on the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula and the consolidation of cooperation. Kwon also called on China to play a constructive role to elicit any positive response from North Korea on President Yoons audacious plan of seeking to help Pyongyang to improve its economy in return for denuclearization.

In conclusion, the 30thanniversary of Sino-South Korean relations are marked by a common desire to enhance cooperation and deepen mutual exchanges in all areas. However, the issue of THAAD remains a baffling problem in Sino-South Korean relations. If both sides can tackle economic relations and focus on non-sensitive areas of cooperation, Sino-South Korean relations remain optimistic. After all, China remains a crucial middleman that can bridge the communication gap and frosty relations between South Korea and North Korea. The challenge is for South Korea to strike a very precarious balance between its tendency to be dragged into the military alliance with the US and its necessity of adopting a skillful diplomacy toward China in the very complex relations between Seoul, Pyongyang, Washington and Beijing.

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OPINION - Challenges and opportunities in Chinas relations with South Korea - Macau Business

HONG KONG, Aug 21 (Reuters) - Casino operator MGM China Holding (2282.HK) said it will inject 4.8 billion patacas ($594 million) into its MGM Grande Paradise unit as it prepares to re-tender for a licence to operate its gaming business in Macau.

Under the terms of a revised gaming law released by Macau's legislature earlier this year, a casino needs a minimum capital requirement of 5 billion patacas, and the managing director of the concessionaire must be a Macau permanent resident holding at least 15% of its capital.

MGM China, the Chinese arm of U.S. gambling giant MGM Resorts International, said in a filing on Sunday that if the company is awarded the new concession, co-chairperson Pansy Ho will fill that role.

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MGM Grande Paradise will issue 4.07 million Class A shares to the company at an aggregate subscription price of 4.07 billion patacas, MGM China said in the filing, and issue and transfer another 730,000 Class B shares to Ho.

After the completion of the deal, MGM China and Ho's holdings in MGM Grande Paradise will increase to 84.6% and 15% respectively, while MGM Resort International's stake will drop to 0.4% from 10%.

($1 = 8.0810 patacas)

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Reporting by Clare Jim; Editing by Jan Harvey

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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MGM China to inject $594 million into Macau unit to re-tender for casino license - Reuters

The struggle for Macau's casinos seems far from over. Macaus 41 casino operators reported half-year losses of $2 billion, and total gaming revenue came in at $3.3 billion. The latest numbers come as the city struggles to recover from its largest Covid outbreak, which saw the lock-down of casinos for two weeks, and as virus restrictions from the Mainland continue to affect average daily travel, putting a strain on the industry.

All Macau operators, the only place in China where gambling in casinos is legal, have reported losses in H1 2022. Galaxy Entertainment, which operates Galaxy Macau casino resort, reported an 850 million Hong Kong dollar ($108 million) loss between January and June, reversing a HK$947 million ($120.6 million) profit for the same period last year.

Melco Resorts & Entertainment said its half-year loss hit $434.7 million while operating revenues dropped nearly 29% at the company headed by Lawrence Ho, son of the late gaming tycoon Stanley Ho.

Last week,Wynn Macau reported that HK$3.6 billion ($458,835) first-half loss, after MGM China said it lost HK$2.4 billion ($305,890) in the same period. MGM China's Hong Kong-listed shares have lost nearly half their value over the past year.

Sands China, which runs The Venetian Macao and Sands Macao, said last month that its first-half loss nearly doubled from a year ago to HK$5.96 billion ($759,627), with revenue tumbling nearly 44% from a year ago. Meanwhile, SJM Holdings, whose stock is down more than 50% over the past year, lost HK$2.75 billion ($350,499) in the first half, nearly doubling from a year earlier.

More than two years of virus restrictions have been disastrous for the city's six gaming companies, with several leaning on credit lines to keep the lights on. Moreover, annual visitor numbers have plummeted from 39 million in 2019 when Macao raked in gaming revenue of about $36 billion.

According to Jefferies analyst Andrew Lee, Macao is unlikely to see a firm recovery until 2023. "We expect visitation to remain low in the near term on fear of quarantine," he wrote in a note, as reported by NikkeiAsia.

Analysts are warning that gaming revenue, which accounts for 80% of government tax revenue, could fall further even as the city reopens its border with mainland city Zhuhai. The latest numbers released by NikkeiAsiacome following the July revenue report when the city reported anall-time gaming revenue low, with gross gaming revenue falling 95% to 398 million patacas ($49 million), 98% lower than pre-pandemic levels.

"We expect that gross gaming revenues in Macau, as well as hotel, restaurant, and other nongaming activities that depend on tourism, will continue to be negatively impacted by COVID-19 for an indefinite period," said SJM Holdings in an exchange filing.

On Thursday, Melco shared its unaudited second-quarter financial results. Total operating revenues for Q2 were $296.1 million, down approximately 44% from $566.4 million in the comparable period in 2021.

The decrease in total operating revenues was primarily attributable to heightened border restrictions in Macau and mainland China related to COVID-19, which led to a softer performance in the rolling chip and mass market table games segments. This was accompanied byan operating loss for the quarter of $209.2 million. Melco generated negative Adjusted Property EBITDA of $13.8 million, compared with $79.1 million in Q2 2021.

Breaking down figures by resort findsCity of Dreams Macau posted operating revenue of $97.3 million in Q2, down from $347.6 million the prior year. The Altira Macau hotel posted operating revenues down to $7.2 million in Q2 from $18.3 million; Studio City reported $35.9 million in operating revenues, down from $104.5 million last year; and City of Dreams Manila posted operating revenues of $111.7 million, up when compared to $52.7 million in Q2 2021.

Lawrence Ho, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer, said: "It goes without saying that our results for the second quarter of 2022 were heavily impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions imposed across mainland China and Macau. Throughout the pandemic, ensuring the health and safety of our Colleagues has been very important, and these continued to be our highest priority through the recent outbreak in Macau."

"In contrast to the challenges we have been facing in Macau, our businesses in the Philippines and Cyprus have been improving with volumes gradually recovering toward pre-COVID levels," the executive added.

Despite the current struggles and hurdles, operators in Macau are now gearing up to bid for new licenses ahead of the September 14 deadline. Operating rights are set to expire at the end of the year so the tenders, which require a minimum guarantee of MOP10 million ($1.2 million), are crucial to casino operators' operations.

Macao has tightened its gaming law and cracked down on lucrative VIP gambling, which is forcing operators to turn their focus to mass-market gaming and foreign gamblers, a move that would mean a full recovery might not come until 2024, Moody's Investors Service has said. The city is also pushing operators to expand nongaming entertainment options.

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Macau's casino losses exceed $2B mark in H1 as they await bidding process; recovery not expected until 2023 - Yogonet International

The 2015 Macau Grand Prix held for the Formula Three cars was a joy to watch, especially for Charles Leclerc, who impressed Ferrari bosses

Back in the karting and F3 era, Charles Leclerc was one of the talents to watch out for. This was mainly due to his quick speed with a sharp vehicle intelligence.

The Monegasque driver narrowly missed out on the Formula Renault world championship. to former rival Nyck de Vries. However, the $12 million worth of drivers won the Junior World Championship ahead of Matevos Isaakyan.

The 2015 Macau Grand Prix was one to look out for. Leclerc was driving for the Dutch Formula 3 team of Van Amersfoort Racing. He led the championship with over 40 points after the first round.

However, things did not go as planned. Prema Racing was far ahead of Van Amersfoort in terms of development. Leclerc could only finish fourth in the world championship.

The highlight of the year was the Macau Grand Prix. The Monegasque driver qualified third on the grid. In the qualifying race, he finished second.

The highlight was especially in the main race, where Leclerc had an amazing battle with the race winner Felix Rosenqvist. He was the star man of the race, with many experts linking him with Ferrari.

Also Read: Lando Norris laments removal of $22 million a year circuit from F1 calendar

Scuderia Ferrari officially signed Charles Leclerc in their Junior driver program right after the F3 season. He then signed with the ART racing team to compete in the GP3 season.

Signing with the Prancing horse was no easy job for Leclerc. There were plenty of times he had to travel to Maranello with his father for simulation tests.

Describing this experience, Leclerc explained that he felt nervous and shy because of his age and did not know if he was good enough for the program.

In conclusion, the current Ferrar driver stated: All the tests lasted two days, and in the end, the good news was brought, I was accepted to defend the red.

Also Read: 21 F1 Grand Prix winner Kimi Raikkonen unsure of NASCAR Cup Series return after the rousing debut

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F3 Macau Grand Prix that made Ferrari to create $12 Million per year earning superstar Charles Leclerc - The Sportsrush

Two different studies, carried out one year apart, establish the existence of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Macau Business | August 2022 | Special Report | Hatosghost5yearson

One month after of one of the most serious natural disasters ever to strike southern China, 1,876 Chinese university students in Macau were recruited into a cross-sectional study aimed at investigating key exposure-related risk factors for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) while examining the effect of media exposure on the prevalence of disaster-related PTSD.

The team led by Brian J. Hall (Global and Community Mental Health Research Group, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Macau) also included researchers from China and the USA, in addition to a majority from Macau.

According to these scientists, direct exposure to natural disasters and related losses are associated with PTSD. It is less clear whether indirect media exposure is associated with PTSD.

The results were clear: the prevalence of PTSD was 5.1 per cent.

The prevalence of PTSD was 6.5 per cent among local Macau (SAR)-born students, 5.6 per cent among Hong Kong (SAR)-born students and 2.3 per cent among students born in mainland China.

[This prevalence is lower than the 7.3 per cent reported among adolescents 6 months after Hurricane Andrew (Bahamas and USA), and it is also low compared with the reported prevalence of 9.4 per cent among disaster exposed volunteers 1.54 months after Super Typhoon Haiyan (Philippines0. This variation in prevalence may be due to many factors, including the difference in assessment methods, characteristics of the population, and the severity of disasters.]

Adjusted models demonstrated that being male (vs female), having endured home damage, witnessing people injured, and almost drowning during the storm were associated with PTSD.

After adjusting for direct exposure, indirect exposure to disaster related social media content, including information related to drowning victims and residents emotional reactions, was associated with PTSD.

By contrast, viewing more information about the storm itself and images of heroic acts were significantly associated with lower odds of PTSD.

While the work of Professor Hall and team was carried out in the aftermath of the Hato event, Connie Ip Hong Nei took a year to evaluate the Prosocial Behaviour in the Aftermath of Typhoon Hatoand to find the Relationship with Empathic Self-Efficacy, Emotional Distress, and Exposure to Social-Related Media Among Macau Citizens, with the help of 288 Macau adult residents.

Connie Ip presented her dissertation to the Faculty of the California School of Professional Psychology, Alliant International University (Hong Kong Campus), in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Psychology.

Despite the fact that only 10 per cent of participants experienced significant property damage or loss of incomeand most participants experienced only superficial damage to their homes, emotional distress a year after the typhoon was still significant Connie Ip

Ms Ip concluded that, in this sample, the most commonly reported sources of inconvenience and loss were loss of utilities and superficial damage to homes. Approximately 42 per cent of the participants had significant temporary loss of water and electricity services in their homes, around 10 per cent of the participants reported damage to their personal property outside of their home, and approximately 23 per cent reported superficial damage to where they lived. Fewer than 10 per cent of the participants had significant property damage or significant loss of income or business.

Despite the fact that only 10 per cent of participants experienced significant property damage or loss of incomeand most participants experienced only superficial damage to their homes, emotional distress a year after the typhoon was still significant, she wrote.

The author estimated the level of traumatic stress of the current sample due to Typhoon Hato and concluded that nearly 20 per cent of the participants experienced clinical symptoms of traumatic stress a year after Typhoon Hato.

Results also showed 59 per cent of the participants showed increases in psychological distress in the immediate aftermath of the flood, and 55 per cent of those participants showed significant elevations of distress a year later, although overall distress had declined compared to the period shortly after the flooding.

Participants described a variety of common helping behaviours after the typhoon, including distributing water to those in need, participating in volunteer services, and sharing important information with others on the Internet. The most common form of helping both immediately after Typhoon Hato and a year later was checking in with family and friends, the dissertation reads.

The radio

The team led by Brian J. Hall quotes several studies saying that in the aftermath of disaster, people tend to seek information about the potential threat to reduce anxiety but instead they are exposed to distressing content on the media which may increase their stress.

Consistent with the relative risk appraisal model, we might expect that the magnitude and rarity of a typhoon such as Hato may have signalled a high level of threat, which would be worsened by media exposure, they add.

Among various forms of media, only listening to radio programmes was significantly associated with PTSD in multivariable analyses. This is counterintuitive, as youth do not mainly use the radio.

However, according to the Macao Government report, there were 250,000 households left without power, and with no access to the internet. The radio was the only source of information during the disaster, and in some districts, the electricity supply and internet service only resumed 1 week after the typhoon.

Therefore, people most affected by the typhoon relied on radio to obtain access to media reports about the storm and recovery efforts since other forms of media were not available.

Conclusion: these findings add to the literature demonstrating that some types of media use and certain media content following a natural disaster are associated with PTSD.

But the authors highlight another notable finding: viewing more information related to the storm itself (i.e. objective information) and viewing images of people being heroic were protective factors for PTSD.

Previous | The future frequency and magnitude of storms that influence the GBA region will be increasing

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Special Report - PTSD in the aftermath - Macau Business

Chan Chak Mo, president of Macau's Second Standing Committee of the Legislative Assembly (AL), announced Friday that the revised version of the city's bill that regulates casino operations part of a larger package of new gaming laws provides that concessionaires may take deposits from patrons in cash, chips, or other cash transfer methods.

Additionally, casino concessionaires may also keep casino earnings in accounts established at the casino cashiers. However, concessionaires would be banned from "providing the gamblers any monetary interest" for the accounts established.

The clarification was included in the new version of the bill that was sent by the government to the AL, where the bill is now undergoing detailed analysis at the second standing committee. However, the creation and maintenance of these accounts are restricted to the operators that are subject to anti-moneylaundering, counterterrorism financing, and other regulations. This would confirm that the source of themoneydeposited by the patrons is legitimate, Chan said, as reported by Macau Daily Times.

Additionally, it was explained that no transfers of funds between accounts will be permitted and no other entities such as gaming promoters (junkets) can participate in this model.The casino concessionaires must not offer any interest or compensation to patrons in exchange for keeping money in these accounts.

Chan explained that the intention of these accounts is to remove the need for patrons to carry money and other valuables with them while traveling, and the accounts may only be provided by the casino as a service.

Concessionaires found offering capital interest or other monetary rewards to players in return for holding their money or gambling chips would be considered as being involved in an act of "illegal taking of deposits." According to the bill, this is a crime punishable by up to five years in prison.

The purpose of the bill is to prevent unlawful operations that have occurred in the past, mostly from the so-called VIP rooms operated by junkets that offered high interests in exchange for deposits of gamblers and other people. In the past, several issues occurred with these kinds of deposits that resulted in accusations of fraud and scams. The issues also led to the loss of millions of patacas from depositors.

Regarded as a bill that mostly regulates the operation of junkets, this bill is currently under evaluation by the second standing committee. It is hoped that the bills final reading and approval will occur this legislative year, in October or mid-November, further reports the cited source.

The news comes after an announcement last week stating that the city's casino industry is showing early signs of recovery after the gaming hub experienced its worst Covid-19 outbreak yet. The latest data showsaverage daily gaming increased to MOP36 million (US$4.5 million) last week, according to channel checks carried out by brokerageSanford C. Bernstein.

During the period between August 1 and August 7, local casinos generated a total of MOP250 million ($30.9 million).The latest numbers show recovery, after the citys gross gaming revenue fell 95% to 398 million patacas ($49 million) in July, 98% lowerthan pre-pandemic levels, representing the worst month eversince records began in 2009.

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Macau casinos to be allowed to take deposits from patrons as long as no monetary interest is offered - Yogonet International

Adidas will get a new CEO during the course of 2023 as it seeks to emerge from the turbulence of Covid-19 lockdowns and other challenges, the German sportswear giant said on Monday.

Current CEO Kasper Rorsted will remain in post until a successor has been appointed to help ensure a smooth transition at the helm of the company, Adidas said in a statement.

After three challenging years that were marked by the economic consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic and geopolitical tensions, it is now the right time to initiate a CEO transition and pave the way for a restart, said Thomas Rabe, chairman of the Adidas supervisory board.

The transition was mutually agreed upon, according to the companys statement.

Rorsted, who has helmed the iconic German company since 2016, said the past years have been marked by several external factors that disrupted our business significantly.

It required huge efforts to master these challenges. This is why enabling a restart in 2023 is the right thing to do both for the company and me personally, he said.

Adidas in July cut its 2022 outlook, partly due to an expected double-digit drop in Chinese sales for the rest of the year as Covid-19 lockdowns keep consumers out of shops.

The firm said its adjusted guidance also accounts for a potential slowdown of consumer spending in (other) markets during the second half of the year as a result of the more challenging macroeconomic conditions.

The Nike rival now sees net profit for the year coming in at 1.3 billion euros ($1.3 billion) compared to its earlier forecast of between 1.8 and 1.9 billion euros.

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Adidas CEO Rorsted to stand down in 2023 - Macau Business

A high-speed electric passenger train and an inspection train, customized for the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway in Indonesia, left the port of Qingdao in east Chinas Shandong Province on Sunday.

The trains were designed and manufactured by CRRC Qingdao Sifang Co., Ltd. for the landmark project under the Belt and Road Initiative.

The first trains will arrive in Jakarta by the end of August, and the delivery of the remainder will be completed in batches by the beginning of 2023, according to the company.

Relying on the advanced technology of the Fuxing bullet train, the trains have a maximum operating speed of 350 kilometers per hour and were designed and manufactured according to Chinese standards, and adapted to the local operational environment and line conditions in Indonesia, as well as to the local culture.

With a total length of 142 kilometers, the Jakarta-Bandung high-speed railway connects Jakarta, the Indonesian capital, and Bandung, a famous tourist city in Indonesia.

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China begins shipment of high-speed trains to Indonesia - Macau Business