The new appearance of local Covid-19 cases has caused the number of tourist arrivals to plummet by 70 per cent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
Macau.- Arrivals to Macau fell by 70 per cent\u00a0<\/strong>over the weekend as Macau announced the detection of two local Covid-19 cases and imposed countermeasures similar to those\u00a0imposed in August<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A new\u00a0mass testing for Covid-19<\/a>\u00a0is being carried out and is expected to be faster than the last one. As of Monday, almost 607,000 tests had been completed and no new cases were detected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, analysts at Bernstein Research predict that October’s Golden Week<\/strong>\u00a0will now be weaker than expected. They expect the city to see a recovery later in the month and into November.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “Golden Week will be weaker than expected due to the Covid situation and we forecast October GGR to be down 71 per cent versus 2019.”<\/p>Bernstein Research<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n They added: \u201cLonger term, Individual Visit Scheme eVisa, group visa restart, and Hong Kong travel resumption will be necessary to drive gross gaming revenue (GGR) upwards.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n They believe Macau is unlikely to remove its\u00a0<\/strong>travel restrictions<\/a>\u00a0<\/strong>for people coming from places beyond mainland China before 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Analysts at JP Morgan Securities<\/strong>\u00a0also believe\u00a0expectations for the national holiday<\/a>\u00a0could be deeply affected by new countermeasures.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They said: \u201cWhile there\u2019s still a possibility that travel restrictions could be lifted before\/during Golden Week,\u00a0we think it\u2019s a foregone conclusion that it will be an ungolden holiday<\/strong>, as many players are likely to cancel the trips to avoid risks of being quarantined upon their return to mainland.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Authorities have suspended the\u00a0<\/strong>\u201cStay, Dine and See Macao\u201d initiative<\/a>\u00a0that let Macau residents book government-subsidised staycations at hotels and guest houses.<\/p>\n\n\n\nGaming law consultation session cancelled due to Covid-19 cases<\/h2>\n\n\n\n