 CASINO gamblers hate two things. One is losing. The other is understated decor. There is no risk of the latter at the Galaxy, Macau’s latest shrine to excess, which opened on May 15th. Its owners, Galaxy Entertainment, a firm controlled by the family of Lui Che-woo, a Hong Kong cement magnate, claim to have slapped enough gold leaf on its fixtures to cover 87 football pitches. To recoup the $1.9 billion it cost to build the Galaxy, it will have to attract a lot of losers. 賭場的賭徒們向來最討厭兩件事情：一件是輸錢，另一件就是賭場裝修的不夠氣派。但是對于澳門5月15日新開張的超一流賭博圣地Galaxy來說，有關(guān)裝修的擔(dān)心則完全可以忽略。Galaxy所屬的Galaxy Entertainment公司由Lui Che-woo家族所控制。Lui Che-woo是香港建筑業(yè)巨頭，他聲稱新建的賭場占地有87個(gè)足球場那么大，并且內(nèi)飾奢華。Galaxy共耗資19個(gè)億，要想收回成本，它就必須吸引大量的賭徒前來賭錢。 Macau, a former Portuguese colony known for gambling and other vices, was handed back to China in 1999. By this accident of history, it became the only place in the People’s Republic where casinos are legal. Stanley Ho, an ageing local tycoon, lost his monopoly over the business (though his family still controls or has fingers in roughly half of it). Glitzy Western casino operators arrived to challenge his bedraggled gambling dens with their spit-stained carpets. The Sands opened in 2004, the Wynn in 2006 and the Venetian in 2007, each fancier than its predecessor. The Galaxy tops the lot. What will come next? 澳門作為葡萄牙的，在1999年回歸中國之前，以賭博和情色業(yè)等而聞名。出于歷史的偶然性，澳門現(xiàn)在成為了中華人民共和國境內(nèi)唯一可以合法開設(shè)賭場的地方。Stanley Ho，這位年事已高的澳門本地商業(yè)大亨，正在逐漸喪失他對澳門賭博業(yè)的壟斷（盡管他的家族現(xiàn)在仍然控制或插手澳門賭博業(yè)大約一半的生意）。Glitzy Western賭場的老板就仗著自己賭場的名聲遠(yuǎn)道而來向他發(fā)起挑戰(zhàn)。另外The Sands賭場也與2004年開業(yè)，the Wynn賭場和the Venetian賭場分別于2006年和2007年開業(yè)，每一座新建的賭場在規(guī)模和裝修上都會超過先前。Galaxy的規(guī)模和豪華程度更是世所罕見，下一個(gè)又會是誰呢？ Possibly not much. Granted, the Sands hopes to open an even bigger casino next year, and three out of the four other operators (Wynn, MGM and Mr Ho’s SJM) have ambitious plans. But there are new constraints. Macau’s government, perhaps at the urging of Beijing, recently capped the number of gambling tables in Macau at 5,500, approximately the current number. Another 3-4% will be allowed annually, split between all the operators. That hardly allows room for mega-projects—the Galaxy alone added 450 tables. 也許不會有太多了。盡管the Sands集團(tuán)希望在明年開一個(gè)規(guī)模更大的賭場，并且四大賭場老板中有三位(Wynn, MGM and Mr Ho’s SJM)仍然在計(jì)劃擴(kuò)大規(guī)模。但是澳門政府已經(jīng)出臺了新的限制政策。澳門政府最近通過與北京協(xié)商，打算將賭桌的數(shù)量控制在5500桌左右，大約相當(dāng)于現(xiàn)有的規(guī)模。另外澳門政府將允許賭桌數(shù)量每年有3%-4%的增長，這一增長將平分給澳門所有的賭場。所以像Galaxy這種一次性增加450桌的大手筆已經(jīng)一去不復(fù)返了。 Perhaps the government will relent. Demand shows no sign of slacking. From December, the three-hour bus ride from Guangzhou to Macau will be replaced by a 47-minute trip on a high-speed train. Eager punters from the Chinese interior will suddenly find temptation nearer. Aaron Fischer, an analyst with CLSA, a broker, predicts that gambling revenues in Macau will rise by 35% this year, 25% next year and 20% thereafter, while the supply of new tables will rise only gradually. Fat profits beckon. 但是也許澳門政府在不久的將來會放松限制。因?yàn)槭袌鰧€桌的需求沒有絲毫的放緩。自十二月起，從廣州到澳門的高速列車將會開通，屆時(shí)原本需要3個(gè)小時(shí)的車程將會被縮短至47分鐘。中國內(nèi)陸的賭徒也許突然會覺得誘惑離自己更近了。Aaron Fischer是CLSA的一名分析師，同時(shí)也是一名經(jīng)紀(jì)人，他預(yù)測澳門賭博業(yè)的收入增長在賭桌增長受限的情況下，今年會保持在35%左右，明年會保持在25%左右，以后每年則會保持在20%左右。澳門的賭博業(yè)將會收入頗豐。 The greatest threat to Macau’s licence to print money is that the Chinese government may grow jealous. It has in the past limited the number of visas it issues for mainland visitors to Macau. And there are rumours that it may allow casinos on other patches of its territory, such as Hainan, an island province in the south. Casinos are popular, pay a lot of taxes and please well-connected developers. It would hardly be a surprise if the government in Beijing decided to grab a piece of the action. 也許對澳門賭博業(yè)來說最大的威脅來自于北京的嫉妒。北京在過去已經(jīng)開始對內(nèi)陸游客前往澳門的簽證進(jìn)行了限制。并且有謠言說北京將在除澳門之外的地方開設(shè)賭場——海南將會是北京的一個(gè)選擇。開賭場不僅盈利前景看好，并且可以給政府帶來高稅收，還可以滿足那些背景雄厚的開發(fā)商的投資需求。所以如果北京決定在賭博業(yè)分一杯羹的話，這大可不必感到奇怪。 |
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