Wynn expects Macau to control Covid-19 outbreak

Ian Couglan, Wynn Macau president, has said he is confident Macau will control the local Covid-19 cases within a couple of weeks.

Macau.- With Macau launching pandemic prevention measures following the detection of four Covid-19 cases, Ian Couglan, Wynn Macau president, has said he is confident that the outbreak will quickly be under control.

Casinos remain open for now, though Couglan said a return to “normal levels” of business will depend on an increase in the vaccination rate in the city and its neighbouring provinces.

According to the Ministry of Health, 44 per cent of the population has been vaccinated, a rate similar to Hong Kong.

Matt Maddox, Wynn’s chief executive, added: “We don’t know how long this is going to last, but the experience thus far – with the decisive action, and the ability to test millions of people just in a matter of days in the region and Macau – does give us great hope that this will pass.”

Tai Wa Hou, Macau’s health official, has urged people to avoid non-essential travel while authorities said they would conduct mass testing of the population.

Authorities have implemented controls requiring all visitors to Macau from any mainland Chinese city to hold a negative nucleic acid test certificate for Covid-19.

Ho Iat Seng, Macau’s Chief Executive, has said that despite cases of Covid-19 in the city, authorities won’t close casinos for now.

He noted that if Macau cannot reach the MOP130bn (US$16.28bn) in GGR that it forecast for 2021 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the government will revise its budget for the current fiscal year.

In July, Lei Wai Nong, Macau’s secretary for economy and finance, said Macau still expected GGR to reach MOP130bn (US$16.28bn) for 2021 despite lower than expected results in the first half.