An open day in Yarmouth next week for prospective developers and operators of the resort's large casino is being seen as an important gauge of commercial appetite for the scheme in the current economic climate. When it was announced two years ago that the resort had clinched one of eight large casino licences - the only venue on the East Coast to be chosen - there was initial euphoria over the expectation of thousands of extra visitors and more than 1,000 new jobs.

Liberalizing gambling laws could help China survive the global economic downturn, sports officials said at the annual meeting of China’s parliament last week. Gambling was banned in mainland China after the Communist takeover in 1949, the exceptions being two state lotteries - one of them run by the sports ministry to fund the building of facilities.

Last year, Las Vegas gaming revenue fell to 2005 levels. On the Strip, which generates more than half of the state’s gaming revenue, gamblers lost USD 6.1 billion last year. That’s about what they lost in 2005 — a boom year with revenue soaring 13 percent from a year earlier. No industry wants to go backward. But considering the stock market has plunged to 1997 levels and homes may take decades to return to their peak values of a couple of years ago...

The Tourist Secretary of the government of the City of Mexico, Alejandro Rojas Díaz-Durán, demanded the congress to approve the Gaming Law with Bets and Casinos in order to revive the economy with the boost of the tourist sector. The officer considered as a "false debate" the arguments against this initiative that is in the Chamber of Representatives since 1996 and that –according to him "in these moments of crisis may generate more income to the country.”

The hot streak is over for Colorado's casinos. The gambling establishments, blaming a slumping economy and a smoking ban, have posted their worst year since the state introduced them in 1991 to resurrect the ailing economies of three former mining towns. The casinos' total revenue dropped 12 percent to USD 716 million in 2008, the Colorado Division of Gaming reported Wednesday.

Admit it, you were among the thousands of Southern Nevadans who turned the calendar to 2009 with gusto. Most of us couldn't wait to leave 2008 and its pessimistic headlines in the dust. Downturns in visitor volume, hotel occupancy, average daily room rates, airline capacity and gross gaming revenue - it was all so depressing. Although there are still pessimists out there who expect 2009 won't be any better than 2008 - or possibly worse - there are a few rays of hope things could get better in tourism.

New York (AP) -- New Year's may have been better than expected in Las Vegas, which could bode well for some casino operators, an analyst said Monday. KeyBanc Capital Markets' Dennis Forst said early assessments reveal that the holiday brought good crowds to Las Vegas, although spending at casinos and on food was a bit mild. "At the high end properties, there was a strong international flavor and that would indicate that luck dictated the performance of the holiday at those casinos."

Atlantic City - New Year's Eve is to the casinos what the Super Bowl is to the NFL and the Academy Awards are to the motion picture industry. It is one gigantic blowout bash featuring lavish parties, extravagant meals and big-name entertainment to reward high rollers for their loyalty and keep them coming back in the new year. But as Atlantic City continues to struggle with the recession and plunging revenue, the most important holiday on the casino calendar will not be as grand as in years past.

Atlantic City, New Jersey (AP) -- Juan Jimenez's job at the casino wasn't the most glamorous one in the place. But picking up cigarette butts, vacuuming dirt from carpets and shampooing stains from spilled drinks (and other, much worse substances) allowed him to bring his family from the Dominican Republic, buy a small house and claim a tiny slice of the American Dream. In October, his luck ran out.

The credit crunch has broken the bank at some of Britain's biggest casinos. In the last 12 months, nine gambling dens have closed their doors - victims of government tax increases, the smoking ban and the worsening economic climate. Gala Coral, owned by private equity firms Permira, Candover and Cinven, has shut four casinos, including its upmarket haunt in London's Picadilly Circus. Genting Stanley has shut two in Liverpool and Manchester and axed 400 staff. It is currently in a pay dispute with the GMB union.

Nevada's tax revenue predictions are grim. Monday's Economic Forum concluded that the state is in a recession it's unlikely to recover from within the next two years. And as News 3's Jesse Corona explains, over 60 percent of our state tax base depends upon two sources tied closely to tourism. Economic Forum Chairwoman Cathy Santoro relayed the sobering news: Gaming tax revenue is down 11 percent and isn't expected to make an improvement by the end of the fiscal year.

Station Casinos’ owners are contemplating putting more of their own money into the firm to weather the current economic storm. They could loan the company between USD 450 million and USD 500 million, as well as conduct a debt exchange, to reduce the locals gaming company’s debt load and related interest payments, a filing Tuesday with the Securities and Exchange Commission said.