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Casinos could be in the works for Japan
After Singapore, Japan? A pro-casino group of Japanese lawmakers has tapped an influential member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) as its leader and plans to submit legislation this year aimed at opening the world's third-largest economy to casino gambling.
Although casinos are illegal, Japanese are already active gamblers, and a pinball-like game called pachinko generates some US$200 billion in revenue each year - about the same as Toyota Motor Corp. Japan is often touted as the next major casino market after Macau, the world's biggest gambling hub, which raked in revenue of US$38 billion last year.
A large and wealthy population coupled with proximity to Shanghai and Beijing has the potential to transform Japan into a lucrative gaming centre, providing tax revenues to shore up the state's ailing finances, analysts say.
Broker CLSA estimates Japan's gaming market could be worth at least US$10 billion if two large- scale integrated resorts are approved - more than Singapore's US$5.9 billion and Las Vegas' US$6.2 billion in 2012. |
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