Macau (Reuters) - On Macau's dusty Cotai strip, the cranes at the Las Vegas Sands' construction site stand idle at dusk atop the half-finished husks of three massive towers, while weary batches of construction workers, laid-off en masse, stream out of the site's turnstiles, many for the last time. After a golden streak since 2002, which saw Macau transformed from a sleepy former Portuguese colonial backwater into a Las Vegas-style gambling paradise, Macau's luck may be running out.

Macau’s casino revenue fell for a second straight quarter, as Chinese government tightened visa restrictions for its citizens traveling to the city. Gambling fell to USD 3.25 billion in the third quarter from us$ 3.6 billion in the second, according to figures posted on the Web site of Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau. Restrictions imposed by China on mainland tourists have progressively reduced the number of visitors to Macau, the only place in Chinese where casinos are legal.

(Bloomberg) - Las Vegas Strip casino gambling revenue declined for the eighth straight month in August as cash-strapped U.S. consumers curbed entertainment and travel spending because of an economic slowdown. Gambling proceeds from the Strip fell 7.4 percent to USD 494 million in August, Nevada's Gaming Control Board said today. Casino revenue at the largest U.S. gambling center slid 6.7 percent to USD 4.21 billion this year...

New York (AP) - Shares of casino operators tumbled Monday -- several to new multiyear lows -- as jittery investors watched Wall Street and global markets slide on fears the financial crisis is spreading. The markets have realized that the USD 700 billion rescue plan won't work quickly to unfreeze the credit markets, and that many banks are still having difficulty gaining access to cash.

Investors wiped more than AUD 100 million off the value of major gaming companies Tabcorp Holdings Ltd and Tattersall's Ltd on Monday, after the pair warned earnings could be impacted by a horse racing industry shut down. Smaller rival, online betting firm Centrebet International Ltd also lost value after weekend thoroughbred and harness race meetings were cancelled in a bid to contain an outbreak of highly infectious equine influenza that has rattled the industry.

Newark, New Jersey - Net income at Atlantic City's 11 casinos fell 34 percent in the second quarter, giving the industry its second consecutive quarterly drop, the state Casino Control Commission reported Friday. Net revenues fell 6.1 percent and gross operating profit dropped 19 percent in the April-June period for the seaside gambling halls, which have been hurt by competition from new slot parlors in New York and Pennsylvania.