Macau SAR Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng says he expects gross gaming revenues (GGR) in September to slightly improve compared with August, but they are unlikely to show any significant increase.
Speaking to media on Tuesday, Ho said he would be keeping an eye on daily GGR and visitor numbers in the lead-up to the 1 October Golden Week.
“I don’t think GGR would greatly increase this month,” Ho said. “We hope more visitors will arrive in Macau in late September and before Golden Week.”
The nationwide Individual Visit Scheme (IVS) for Macau will resume on 23 September, however Ho said it is hard to confidently predict a sudden surge in visitor numbers.
“The pandemic has had such a great impact around the world that we don’t have any reference figures to predict the situation of Macau’s economy in the second half of this year,” he explained.
Meanwhile, the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Ao Ieong U, said the SAR government had implemented a pre-arranged plan to loosen border controls step by step. When the situation in other countries become stable, the government will consider easing border restrictions on foreign non-resident workers,” he said.
Ho is scheduled to visit Sanya in Hainan Province for the Pan-Pearl River Delta (PPRD) Regional Co-operation Chief Executive Joint Conference from Wednesday, aiming to facilitate the establishment of a shared free-port while enhancing cooperation in the PPRD region.