Macau October Gambling Revenue Up 42% On Year At MOP26.85 Billion

Gambling revenue in Macau rose 42% to a new record high in October, government statistics showed Tuesday, as high rollers from mainland China continued to fuel growth despite investor concerns Beijing's moves to tighten credit will stop the music.

Macau, the only place in China where casino gambling is legal, has seen gambling revenue soar since the end of 2009 as players continue to place bets regardless of China's tightening measures and local government policies aimed at slowing growth to a more measured pace.

Gambling revenue in the Chinese territory rose to MOP26.85 billion (US$3.36 billion) last month, up from MOP18.87 billion a year earlier, according to data from Macau's Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau.

October's revenue haul bested the territory's previous all-time high of MOP24.77 billion hit in August. It was boosted by China's "golden week" holidays, which fall in May and October.

In the January-October period, Macau's gambling revenue has risen 45% from a year earlier, following a 58% surge last year.

Macau overtook the Las Vegas Strip as the world's biggest gambling market in 2006 and is poised to rake in more than five times the Strip's gambling revenue this year.

-By Kate O'Keeffe, Dow Jones Newswires; 852-2802-7002; [e-mail]