Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Singapore's $5.94 billion Marina Bay Sands casino opens

Singapore threw open the doors of its second casino on Tuesday as part of a $US5.5 billion ($A5.9 billion) complex built by US gaming giant Las Vegas Sands.

Singapore Marina Bay Sands casino

The $US5.5 billion casino-resort is the world's second most expensive casino after MGM Mirage's CityCenter in Las Vegas and is expected to generate as much $US1 billion in annual profit.

Singapore Marina Bay Sands casino



Singapore Marina Bay Sands casino

Singapore Marina Bay Sands casino

Singapore Marina Bay Sands casino

Its first casino, the $US4.4 billion Resorts World Sentosa, opened for business on February 14.

Singapore, with its two mega casinos, is unlikely to overtake Macau but may steal some "high-rollers" from China as operators shift premium business to the city-state where they face an effective tax rate of 12 per cent compared with about 39 per cent in the Chinese territory.

Neighbouring Malaysia's sole casino, run by Genting Singapore's parent Genting Bhd may also lose business to Singapore's newer and swankier casinos.

Marina Bay Sands has teamed up with coach operators to offer 130 daily trips from various Malaysian cities to its doorsteps.

No comments:

Post a Comment