The gross receipts of Macao's 19 casinos reached 46.1 billion patacas (5.76 billion U.S. dollars) in 2005, up 8.2 percent over the previous year, according to official statistics issued Thursday.

The statistics released by the Government Gazette showed that the 16 casinos of Stanley Ho's entertainment company in 2005 witnessed a 2.2 percent drop in the total gross receipts.

The local gaming cszar's "misfortune" was viewed by analysts as an indicator of the growing competition imposed by international investors, as three other casinos funded by foreign investments all saw rise in their gross receipts in the year.

The three casinos recorded the total gross receipts of 11.6 billion patacas (1.45 billion U.S. dollars) in 2005, up around 11 percent over 2004, according to the figures from the Government Gazette.

Macao, with a population of over 480,000, has a 150-year history of gaming industry and is the only part of China where casino gaming is legitimate.

Source: Xinhua