Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | December 2013 12 Chinese Visitors to Australia COVER STORY The answer lies in large part with something Mr Jamieson said back in September: “Certainly if we want to appeal to the Asia-Pacific, particularly the Chinese market, casinos are seen by them as being an important part of their recreation.” Justin Casey, managing director of Macau-based Asia Pacific Gaming Consultancy, thinks it’s all a bit blue-sky. “Everyone’s got a marble floor, chandelier and a Chinese restaurant now,” he told Bloomberg .“If you had a pocket full of money and you were looking to establish a new destination in Asia, I don’t know Australia would be the first cab off the rank.” In Brisbane, in Sydney, in Canberra for that matter, they beg to differ. ‘Prize Attractions’ Queensland Premier Campbell Newman came back from a tour of Asia in October, with stops in Macau and Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, and pronounced, “We’re in a global competition for tourists.” Stateofficials at that point already had met separately with Echo and Crown and were working to draft a request for “expressions of interest” in a second casino license in Brisbane’s government district. “We’re not just looking for a hotel and some shops,”Mr Newman said, but something“world-class”and“iconic”. Prior to June of this year when Crown was approved to build in Sydney there had not been a new casino license awarded in Australia since 1996. Clearly, much has Mining tycoon Clive Palmer, Queensland’s richest man, is backing construction of a full-size replica of the Titanic and an animatronic Jurassic Park at his Palmer Coolum Resort on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast and wants to develop a $2.5 billion resort in the city’s commercial district. 600 500 400 300 200 100 700 3500 3000 2000 1500 1000 500 4000 0 2500 Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 All Visitors Holiday Visitors All Expenditure Numbers of Visitors (‘000) Expenditure ($ million) Chinese Visitors to Queensland 250 200 150 100 50 300 400 200 100 500 0 300 Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun Jun 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 All Visitors Holiday Visitors All Expenditure Numbers of Visitors (‘000) Expenditure ($ million) Year Ending Year Ending Source: Tourism and Events Queensland