Macau's Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng, considers it "impossible" for the SAR to reach the MOP180 billion ($22.45 billion) goal within 2023.

Macau is on track to hold over 1,000 MICE events this year, as the local government expects to welcome over 170,000 professional visitors from mainland China, Southeast Asian countries, and Portuguese-speaking countries.

Macau's six gaming operators are putting strong efforts into bringing prestigious concerts or shows to Macau, trying to rebrand Macau's image from a gaming hub to a city of entertainment. The move, notes gaming scholar Davis Fong, is laudable, and will further increase the city's attractiveness in 2H23.

A new "forwarding mechanism" aimed at channeling cultural and sports projects to integrated resorts in Macau would maximize the gaming operators' business acumen, notes an academic. Meanwhile, the mechanism could also elevate non-gaming projects' return on investment (ROI) and efficacy, according to gaming scholar Carlos Siu.

Macau’s six gaming operators have submitted detailed plans to revitalize the city's older quarters, which Macau's government has approved, with a total of six old zones to be revamped by gaming operators.

The executive director of SJM Holdings, Daisy Ho, reaffirmed the company's stance on non-gaming investments, saying that “this is not necessarily a problem for integrated resorts operators that can add non-gaming activities to explore what is still a huge potential market.”

MGM China’s Co-Chairperson Pansy Ho believes that Macau’s non-gaming future will succeed despite the competition from the other five concessionaires but notes that manpower is still an issue.

Grant Chum will be a more "hands on" CEO and President at Sands China than the previous management, with his main focus to be in "cost-cutting" and "customer retention", gaming consultant Sudhir Kalé tells AGB.

Macau’s economy is ‘expected to rebound at a double-digit rate for the whole year of 2023,’ according to the SAR’s monetary authority (AMCM).

Macau’s six gaming concessionaires have celebrated the signing of their contracts with the government, cementing a years-long process of speculation, financial instability and lengthy negotiation.