Macao authorities have announced the closure of all casinos in the region for two weeks due to the risk of the spread of the coronavirus. This was reported on the local TV channel. The decision was made by the head of the region, He Yicheng.

About the possible closure of gambling establishments, the authorities for the first timeannounced in mid-January. The decision has now been made and Macau casinos will close on February 12th. Explaining the reasons for the decision, officials explained that the province had already recorded its ninth case of coronavirus, and one of its carriers was a casino employee. In addition, the flow of guests to gambling establishments in Macau already dropped sharply in January 2020 due to fears of players getting infected in crowded places.

He Yicheng, head of the region, held a meeting with representatives of the gambling business. He agreed with them that the employees of the companies will continue to receive salaries, despite the forced closure of establishments.

41 casinos are officially operating in the Macau Special Administrative Region of China. They have more than six thousand gambling tables and 17 thousand slot machines. In the entire history of the existence of the gambling zone, casinos in Macau closed their doors only once - in September 2018 due to Typhoon Mangkhut. According to Bloomberg, as a result of the suspension of work for 33 hours, entrepreneurs lost more than $186 million.