Macau shuts casinos to tame COVID-19 spread as gaming shares drop

The greatest gambling center in the world Macau has reportedly shut down its 30-plus casinos and other businesses for one week, sending shares in gaming companies plummeting as the government battles to control the worst coronavirus outbreak yet.

Notably, for the first time in more than two years, the city issued a stay-at-home directive, apart from brief outings to pick up necessities. Despite operating with a reduced staffing schedule, casinos however are experiencing a considerable decline in investor confidence due to drastic measures.

Moreover, the police are expected to keep a close eye on the flow of people on the streets as well as impose strict punishments on those who disregard the direct orders of the government.

According to sources, the gaming industry's revenue rebound might not occur until the third or fourth quarter.

Meanwhile, the stock price of Sands China Limited fell by 9%, while that of Melco International Development Limited, Wynn Macau, SJM Holdings Ltd., Galaxy Macau, and MGM China plunged between 6-7%.

Thus far, Macau has tallied about 1500 COVID-19 infections resulting in the mandatory quarantine of about 19,000 people as the Chinese government enforces the Zero-COVID-19 policy, which seeks to eradicate all outbreaks and run against a global trend of trying to cohabit with the virus.

More than 30 high-risk areas of Macau are currently in lockdown, which prevents people from entering or leaving the city for at least five days. Even though the authorities insisted there would be no city-wide lockdown, the strict regulations imposed by the authorities say otherwise.

However, the government has refrained from closing casinos in the past, to safeguard jobs and revenue generation which accounts for more than 80% of government revenues, ultimately resulting in employment either directly or indirectly.

Regardless of performing antigen testing every day, residents are expected to participate in large-scale Covid-19 tests, four times this week.

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https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/east-asia/macau-shuts-all-its-casinos-in-race-to-curb-covid-19-spread