Macau – Asia’s Las Vegas Flourishing in the Economic Crisis

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Macau has a special place in history, it must be noted that this special administrative region is the first and last European colony in China. Macau is on the Western side of the Pearl River Delta near the Guangdong province in the north facing the South China Sea.

The Macau Special Administrative Region, also known as Macao, is a progressive place with industries in textile, electronics, toys, and not to mention that this region is a terrific tourist destination for people not just around Asia, but also the whole world.

Macau’s Economy

Macau’s economy is built around tourism and gambling. Some of the other notable industries in Macau include banking, textile, and other financial services. Most of these export-centric industries of Macau has garnered more than 50% of Macau’s GDP and about 70% of their governments earnings.

Macau is actually a founding member of the World Tourism Organization or the WTO. Macau has remained the foremost trade partner with more than 120 countries and regions, including the European Union (EU).

Even in this economy, Macau is regarded by the World Bank as a high income economy. In fact, Macau has registered about 31% increase in GDP year after year since 2007.

Tourism in Macau

The most notable part of Macau’seconomy is the tourism industry geared towards gaming. The WTO reported on 2006 that the region ranked 21st in the number of tourist, and 24th in the number of tourist receipts.

From a mere 9.1 million visitors in the year 2000, Macau’s tourism sky rocketed to 22 million in 2006. Since the handover, Macau has been getting about 50% visitors from mainland China and 30% from Hong Kong.

The success of Macau’s economy can also be attributed to the end of the gambling monopoly in 2002. This end of the monopoly started innovations like The Sands Macau, the largest casino in the world in terms of the number of tables available.

Diversity in Economy

Mighty the economy of Macau may be, there is still an Achilles heel that must be addressed. The fact that Macau is almost solely reliant on gaming and tourism to keep their economy afloat, when the influx of people stalls, it can be a big blow to the small economy of the region.

The government is well aware of this weakness, that is why they are pushing for economic diversification on all fronts. Since the closing of the Portuguese control of the region, the government of Macau has been spending on different industries and a fistful of foreign investment. This will surely help Macau in case of tourism slowdown.

Shining Beacon

In this dark economic times, Macau is like a shining lighthouse in a horrible night time storm. It is reassuring to know that despite of the economic crunch, there are still regions in the world that is thriving and flourishing no matter what.

Macau is a ray of hope. An inspiration that all countries can look up to. Macau is a region in Asia that is living proof of economic security in this trying times. Macau has proven that it is not just a one hit wonder. It is not just about tourism and gaming to keep the economy afloat. All countries should have economic diversification, and Macau is proof of this system.

Image Credit : Flickr.com