US CASINO owner Steve Wynn has said that Wynn Macau’s latest casino resort in the former Portuguese enclave would cost $4 billion, as the company bets on continued growth in the world’s largest gambling destination.
In a media briefing at his Macau casino, Mr Wynn (70), chairman and chief executive of Wynn Resorts and Wynn Macau, also expressed confidence that the property would provide a return on investment despite the current economic climate.
“Growth of the market has been so spectacular, the expansion so dramatic, it is unrealistic for it to continue at that rate,” Mr Wynn said yesterday, although he added that the market did not need to keep increasing at such a pace for it to be a good place to do business.
Macau, located on the tip of China’s southern coast, has been a goldmine for casino operators, raking in more than five times the revenue that Las Vegas does as mainland visitors flock to the only Chinese city where they can casino-gamble legally.
However, data showed last week that gambling revenue growth in Macau had slowed to 7.3 per cent in May. That was its slowest expansion rate since July 2009 and a far cry from the 70-90 per cent monthly growth rates seen in 2010 – although total revenue was still the second highest for a single month.
Mr Wynn shrugged off concerns of a slowdown in the VIP sector, which relies heavily on the availability of liquidity extended to wealthy gamblers.
Macroeconomic risks in China, including easing economic growth, have sparked fears of a slowdown in the number of cash-rich Chinese travelling to gamble in Macau.
Mr Wynn and rivals such as Sheldon Adelson’s Las Vegas Sands and MGM Resorts have been racing to expand in the crowded casino enclave, despite economic uncertainty, as there is only limited space remaining to build new projects.
The company has broken ground on its 20-hectare site located on a reclaimed stretch of land known as Cotai, putting it ahead of rivals including MGM and Macau kingpin Stanley Ho’s SJM Holdings, which are still awaiting government approval. – (Reuters)
