Hong Kong Jockey Club riding high (2)

But the club has fared relatively well during the economic turmoil, as it made efforts to ensure its core business – horse racing. The HKSAR granted the club five extra race days and additional 15 overseas simulcast days per season, which will further expand HKJC's business, said the executive.

Even during the crisis, the club benefited from continued investment in horse racing venue facilities and related products. The Beijing 2008 Olympics and Paralympics attracted worldwide attention to the club's facilities owing to its HK$1.2 billion upgrade for the Olympic equestrian events, the executive said.

However there remain some limitations which hinder the club's growth, pointed out the executive.

There's an urgent need to review the current betting duty policy, the executive noted.

"The current rate of duty is between 72.5 percent and 75 percent of gross margin, which is one of the highest rates in the world, some three times that of Singapore (25 percent) and five times that of the UK (15 percent)," said the annual report.
The high duty rates are conducive to shore up the government's fiscal revenue, but restrain the club's ability to tap into rewarding long-term investments, the executive said.

Furthermore, its annual report stated that Hong Kong's "outdated tax policies" are still hampering horse racing's "further international development, especially in the area of commingling, a growing global trend in which Hong Kong is fast getting left at the starting gate. There is tremendous interest from overseas sports fans in betting on Hong Kong racing and this could earn substantial extra tax revenues for the Government." It said that current tax policies mean the wagers would be subject to the full rate of Hong Kong duty, in addition to being taxed in their home jurisdictions.

[1] [2]