Macau cloud shouldn't darken my casino: Enrique Razon

Manila

WE'RE not Macau.

That's the message from Philippine billionaire Enrique Razon Jr after two quarters of losses at his Bloomberry Resorts Corp, the country's biggest private casino operator and its worst-performing major stock this year.

Bloomberry's losses will narrow because its gaming revenue - in contrast to the situation in Macau - is growing, Mr Razon said in an Oct 2 interview in Manila. Its earnings will improve even as the company plans to provision by year-end for all the unpaid credits it extended to VIP and premium players, he said. Bloomberry provided 1.81 billion pesos (S$55 million) in the first half for 4.69 billion pesos of receivables.

"The whole industry has been painted with the same brush, but we're nowhere near the situation in Macau, where revenue is really falling," said Mr Razon, 55. While some thought Macau and China would keep driving a gaming boom, Mr Razon said the market is the size he anticipated, and "this i…