Chui Hou Ian steps down as deputy director of the Macau DICJ
Chui Hou Ian’s term as deputy director ended on February 8.
Macau.- Chui Hou Ian has stepped down as deputy director of Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ). His term ended on February 8. Lei Seak Chio has taken up the role for a one-year term.
Ian had been appointed deputy director in 2021 after serving as an adviser to the then-secretary for economy and finance, Lei Wai Nong, since 2020. Before that, he had no experience in public administration.
Seak Chio holds a bachelor’s degree in engineering management and a master’s in public administration. Since 2023, he has been employed as an occupational safety official in the Labour Affairs Bureau. He started working there in 2005 as a technical assistant and was promoted in 2016 to manage a unit that oversees occupational accident inspections.
On January 8, the DICJ appointed Lio Chi Chong as acting director following the departure of former director Adriano Ho, who was appointed as the new commissioner of Macau Customs. No permanent replacement has been announced yet.
Macau GGR reaches US$922m in first 9 days of February
Analysts at JP Morgan have estimated that Macau’s gross gaming revenue (GGR) for the first nine days of February was MOP$7.4bn (US$922m). The estimated GGR run rate was MOP$822m (US$102m) a day.
Analysts DS Kim, Mufan Shi and Selina Li said they saw “solid tail-end demand” in the last days of the Chinese New Year holiday period, which ended on February 4. They have forecast GGR for the month in the range of MOP$18.3bn (US$2.28bn) to MOP$19.4bn (US$2.42bn), which would represent a variation of -1 to +5 per cent compared to February 2024. For full-year GGR, they expect single-digit growth of 1 to 4 per cent year-on-year.
