“Air Supply is excited to visit Macau again. We have always been looking forward to this opportunity and we are glad to be invited to play at the Sands Theatre again. We long to meet the Macau audience and we will make it another fabulous night for them” said Graham Russell, Air Supply.

Air Supply has being playing for 33 years, having been formed in 1975 in Australia. Their love songs have always managed to touch people’s hearts. Many of them have achieved multi-million plays on the radio and have become all-time-favourites throughout the world. Their most famous hits include “All Out of Love”, “Making Love Out of Nothing at All”, “Every Woman in the World”, “Lost in Love”, “Two less Lonely People in the World” and “Love and other Bruises”.

“We are honoured to have Air Supply to perform at the Sands Theatre again. We have had great feedback from their show last year and this time we have decided to extend it to 3 consecutive nights.
“If you had watched their performance last year, you certainly should come again for an entirely new experience. If you hadn’t attended their show last year, you definitely don’t want to miss their incredible performance this time,” said Mark Brown, President of Sands Macau and The Venetian Resort.

After Macau, Air Supply will be touring the Philippines, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Thailand, Israel, Brazil, Canada and USA. The show will last for around 90 minutes, with new elements being added this time to ensure that audience will have a unique experience.

Tickets for the show (three shows consecutively on Friday, June 6 till Sunday, June 8 at 20:30 pm) will be on sale Monday, April 28; priced at MOP$580 and MOP$680 and can be booked online at www.venetianmacaotickets.com, by phone on (853) 2882 8818, or in person at the Sands Macau Lobby and the Venetian box offices.

In the first quarter of the year, Sand’s lost US$2 million, down from a profit of almost US$40 million last quarter and almost US$91 million during the first quarter of 2007. Income from the Venetian Macao and Sands Macao dropped from USD133 million in the last quarter of 2007 to USD.4 million in the first three months of this year.

“We lost significant amounts of market share of the VIP business …. It’s clearly an unsatisfactory result,” said Bill Weidner, president and chief operations officer, during a first quarter conference call.

As a result the company has decided to compete with other operators offering junkets — which bring in and finance high roller players — by providing higher levels of commission and access to credit. “Today, we’ve already responded and adjusted our commission rates to be more competitive in the VIP marketplace, with two principal objectives,” said Mr Weidner.

“One, growing our VIP market share and two, increasing our cash flow generated from this portion of our business.” In the past the company has been reluctant to offer credit to operators or players due to the potential difficulty of collection and the fact that bad debts are still taxed as revenue by the government.

However a new junket-aggregator at Melco PBL Entertainment Limited’s Crown Macau providing agents with access to lines of credit has seen many operators lose market share over the last three months. “We were talking about our provision for bad debts, is basically non-existent here in Macau. And it’s almost like a bank that doesn’t have a few bad loans they are probably out lending enough money,” said executive vice president, Brad Stone.

“We have expanded credit to our junket reps and as we’ve talked in the past we have done somewhat collateralised by the commissions we owe them. We are going to look at that as well and probably extend more credits to the junket reps themselves those who have performed well.” The results should start showing at the end of this month, the company said.

Overseeing the changes will be management flown in from the USA.

The President of the Las Vegas Venetian and The Palazzo and Senior Vice President of the company, Rob Goldstein will fly into Macau next week together with Mr Weidner to “focus on the evolving VIP market and the direct customer marketing environment in Macau,” said Mr Weidner. “As he will be there next week as will I, we can and we will execute better in the near term,” he added.

Mr Stone has already arrived in Macau to cut operating costs at the company’s two casinos. With a renewed focus on profitability Sand’s is aiming to open the new casino in the Four Seasons property — scheduled for opening in July — without hiring any additional personnel.

“We can operate our current facilities; The Sands Macao, The Venetian Macao more efficiently. Brad Stone is in Macau now heading up a swat team to rationalise operations as we prepare for and open the Four Seasons,” said Mr Weidner.

VIP gaming at the Four Seasons
Part of the new approach with VIPs will see the company dedicate much of the casino space in the Four Seasons development to VIP gaming. The ground floor of the casino will be dedicated to “premium” players brought in directly by the company, while above will see two floors of junket rooms and eventually each of the property’s planned for 19 mansions will house a casino.

Frustrated with the government
Although looking forward to seeing how the government implements the announced commission controls and limitations on new casinos, Sand’s remains frustrated with the approval process for its remaining plots on the Cotai Strip. Although work has started on its plots 3,7 and 8, it is yet to receive formal approval for the developments.

“We have just been frustrated because of some of the challenges within the government, based upon the scandal that happened here in an area that related to the Public Works Department,” said Mr Stone. “There has definitely been a slowing in the pace throughout Macau, of approvals,” he added.

Sheldon’s fantasy — casinos 10 percent of development
Company chairman Sheldon Adelson hopes last week’s announced casino restrictions will result in the closing of the smaller casinos which hire out VIP rooms, he said during yesterday’s conference call. “My fantasy is such, I mean when we first got involved in Macau we were assured that it would take a couple of years to phase out the VIP rooms,” said Mr Adelson.

“I think the announcement by Edmund Ho last week was a reaction to pressure he has gotten from both us and hopefully we don’t know for sure, because we are not that convinced about that kind of pressure, from the Chinese Liaison Office, that the way the development was going was not what they originally intended for it to be.

“So, we are hoping that our goal is to turn a city of seedy backwater gambling dens into a city of convention, business travel, and business and leisure travel, where the casino represent no more than 10 percent of the total amount of space.”

Courtesy :: Macau Daily Times

One of the largest projects is the US$2.1 billion City of Dreams being built by Leighton Asia, China State and John Holland, on behalf of the Melco PBL development company - owned by Lawrence Ho’s Melco gambling company and James Packer’s Crown group.

After a slow start, work on the project got a serious kick along after Mr Packer and Mr Ho signed up Wal King’s Leighton Holdings to take on the construction.

But that is just one of many projects on the small island, a 50-minute ferry trip from Hong Kong. Housing prices on Macau are going through the roof, spurred by the huge inflow of cash from gambling revenue and hotel room sales.

Roger Barnett, the project director for City of Dreams, said Macau used to be a sleepy town which people visited on the weekend or if they wanted a night out at a casino.

“But now that has completely changed. It is like Las Vegas on steroids. It is absolutely booming,” Mr Barnett said.

The latest report on Macau from Colliers International shows the openings of the Venetian Macau, MGM Grand Macau, Grand Lisboa and Crown Macau last year strengthened the island’s position as a world-class tourist destination.

There were 27 million visitors by the end of last year, which was a year-on-year growth rate of 22.8 per cent. The rising number of visitors as well as increased spending by residents drove retail sales up 33.2 per cent last year and there was a 9.4 per cent year-on-year growth for private consumption expenditure in last year’s third quarter.

There were 28 casinos in Macau by the end of last year.

The report said sustained low interest rates of about 3 per cent and accelerating inflation, together with strong economic fundamentals, would help trigger stronger demand for residential properties.

“In addition, the proposed plan of the first home buyers loan scheme will add extra impetus to the sales market,” the report said.

And on the all-important hotel sector, the report showed that average hotel occupancy rate was 83 per cent, despite the number of hotel rooms expanding by 24.4 per cent year-on-year to more than 16,000 to the end of December.

“The continuous arrival of new resorts and ongoing development of meetings, incentive tours, conventions and exhibitions industries remain the key factors for a positive outlook.”

Hotel projects in the pipeline include the first stage of Ponte 16, which started operations last month, with 420 rooms in the 20-storey hotel and a 25,000 square metre casino.

There are also four hotel-casino developments scheduled to open this year: the Four Seasons, Sheraton Macau, Shangri-La and the Traders.

“Macau enjoyed almost 30 per cent growth in 2007 as a gaming and entertainment hub,” the Colliers report said. “Gaming revenue increased by 45.7 per cent year on year to more than 24.9 million pataca [$3.43 million] in the fourth quarter 2007, fetching a total of 83.8 billion pataca in 2007.”

Thanks to all that cash rolling in, the average residential price edged up over 20 per cent, with almost 20,000 transactions. Colliers said the residential projects coming on line included Harbour Mile by Sun Tak Property comprising seven towers - five for residential, one for office and retail and one for serviced apartments - due for completion by 2010.

The Executive Vice-President of the Beijing Organising Committee for the 2008 Olympic Games (BOCOG), Mr Yang Shuan, presented the tinder lamp to the Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture, Mr Chui Sai On, who welcomed the Olympic Flame at the airport.

In a speech at the welcoming ceremony, Mr Chui sad all residents were excited for the first visit of the Olympic Flame to Macao, and he thanked the efforts of the Central Government, the International Olympic Committee and BOCOG.

He said that the Olympic Flame belonged to the people of the world and it signified the aspirations and pursuit of the Olympic Spirit by all people.

The Torch Relay would spread the blessing to people from all over the world and it also would also bring people’s best wishes to the Beijing Olympics.

The Olympic Flame finally arrived in Macao, he said, and so all the people in Macao could do their part in the event and to pursue the Olympic dream.

The people in Macao have all along been longing for the Beijing Olympics, which opens in August, he said.

The Macao SAR Government, the Macao Olympic Committee, schools, organisations and all residents are well prepared for the Torch Relay, he said. Mr Chu wished the run tomorrow a success, and wished the best for the Beijing Olympic Games.

The number of visitors from mainland China was 4.38 million, which was a rise of 22.6 percent, while the number of visitors from Hong Kong and Southeast Asia rose 3.3 and 63.3 percent, respectively.

In March, the total number of visitors to Macau was 2.7 million, which was a rise of 25.6 percent year on year.

Visitors arriving in Macau were mainly from mainland China (57.7 percent of the total), followed by those from Hong Kong (27.4 percent).

In 2007 Macau had 27 million visitors, as compared with 22 million in 2006.

Mr Ho, who was answering legislators’ questions, said he understood that the increasing exchange rate of RMB had stimulated inflation; however, the pataca’s link exchange rate relationship with the Hong Kong dollar will not be changed in order to maintain financial stability.

At a press conference after the plenary session, the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Francis Tam Pak Yuen, said an unstable monetary policy will cause impact to the entire financial system, and eventually affect the livelihood of residents in an all-round manner.

Therefore, any adjustment in monetary policy should be made after a thorough evaluation, Mr Tam said.

Moreover, some academics believed that adjusting Macao’s monetary policy may not curb inflation or might only have a slight impact on price index, Mr Tam said.

“I think it is excellent news for Macau in general. It is high time to take care of the gaming sections problems,” he said. “It is no good with all the six operators always fighting together using cut throat measures of getting customers into their casino, this is not correct because there is enough room for all six of us.”

“There is no need to do this monkey business, cutting throats, it’s the worst thing possible.”

Mr Ho, also a standing committee member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference, said the move had been prompted by the central government’s concern with the development of the gaming industry in Macau.

“Now that Beijing is concerned and wants to do something in Macau so that all six operators will be controlled by governments gaming section regarding the commission,” he said.

“I am fully in favour of such an action and I think not only that, we must all agree that in Macau now we have far too many casinos and there is no point of opening up more casinos, more than enough, more than rice shops, so that is something we don’t want to encourage.”

However SJM intends to move ahead with its Macau peninsula project, which will possibly see the expansion of the Jai Alai Casino.

The original behemoth ship-ship shaped development which took in the Jai Alai casino, New Yaohan department store and ferry terminal at the outer harbour has been definitively dropped, said Mr Ho.

“I Stanley Ho will not agree with the Oceanus project, I think too big, too much, we can not operate such a huge project involving so many factors,” he said.

“It may be a good idea from the start but it doesn’t work, I am giving up this project and I think the government is supporting me 100 percent.”

However the Jai Alai casino and department store will be redeveloped shortly, clarified executives later, with construction expected to begin as early as June.

As the application for the development has already been submitted with the government, last week’s announcement of a freeze on new casinos won’t apply to the site, said Ambrose So, director of SJM.

However the final approval has not yet been granted: “I hope the government will give consideration to this contract,” said Louis Ng, director and chief operating officer of SJM.

It remains unclear if the announced control on table numbers will affect the project. Currently Jai Alai operates approximately 60 tables, four VIP rooms and more than 200 slot machines.

“We will consolidate the configuration of the casino (Jai Alai), so this will be extended to the New Yaohan site. It’s, the same gaming license, it’s a new addition,” said Mr So.

“That (the new development) will of course comply with the number of tables allowed by the government. It is a re-configuration of the tables and a re-configuration of the hardware itself, it is not a new casino.”

The executives would not give away details of what else was planned for the site, however when asked about details on hotels and shopping, Mg Ng replied that the target audience is “day-trippers”.

The development will begin once the New Yaohan has relocated to the new building in the centre of the city, which will happen at the end of June or July, said Mr Ng.

Cotai clarification needed

The company is also looking for clarification from the government about what it can build on its two small plots of land in Cotai, which are located in front of the exhibition hall of Venetian Macao and close to the Macau Dome.

“We have submitted our application,” said Mr So. If casinos can be built on the sites “depends on the detail arrangement of the government policy,” he added.

“The government is still not very clear on that point and we would like to further clarify that with the government before we progress.”

Courtesy :: Macau Daily Times

The launch would give Bangkok Airways a share of the lucrative and booming air traffic demand of the city. Two operators have been serving the city: the no-frills carrier Thai AirAsia and the full-service airline Air Macau.

Bangkok Airways chief executive Prasert Prasarttong-Osoth said the Bangkok-Macau route offered significant potential for a high cabin factor, reaching a high 80% in six months.

The Macau route is one of a handful of low-risk destinations that Bangkok Airways is tapping this year against the backdrop of a looming traffic slowdown and skyrocketing fuel prices.

Bangkok Airways‘ foray to Macau came against soaring Thai tourist visits to the the oldest and the last European colony in China, where the huge gambling industry has drawn foreign tourists.

Arrivals from Thailand to Macau have grown impressively in the past few years, leaping from 57,876 in 2005 (up 38.32% year-on-year), to 89,448 in 2006 (up 54.55%) and 140,749 in 2007 (up 57.4%), said Macau Government Tourist Office in Bangkok.

In the first quarter of this year, the numbers skyrocketed to 55,834, an 81.26% jump compared to the first quarter of 2007. For 2008, the arrival numbers are expected to rise 40% in the best case scenario or 20-25% growth under a more conservative projection, said Jarunee Tantinukul, marketing manager of Macau Government Tourist Office’s Bangkok branch.

Last December, Thai AirAsia increased frequencies on the route to four flights a day from three, while Air Macau this year stepped up its services to 10 flights a week from seven.

An industry source said there is a good chance that Air Macau would increase the frequency to 12 a week in the near future.

Thai AirAsia is using an Airbus A320- 200, with 180 passenger seats on the Bangkok-Macau route, while Air Macau operates Airbus A319 and A320 jets.

Bangkok Airways plans to jointly promote its new flights to Macau by offering package deals in co-operation with the huge Venetian Macau Resort, which boasts the world’s biggest casino and is Macau’s latest tourist attraction. The resort is owned by the Las Vegas Sands hotel-casino chain.