Las Vegas (AP) -- A spokesman for MGM Mirage Inc. says the casino company has withdrawn from the Nevada Resort Association, the advocacy group for the state's largest industry. MGM Mirage spokesman Gordon Absher said Tuesday that the company is watching its spending carefully during difficult economic times. He says MGM Mirage appreciates the association's work but felt it had to make the "difficult decision" to resign its membership in the organization.

One delay and one continues, but both have the same result: investor satisfaction. MGM Mirage last week downplayed reports that it was having trouble finalizing funding for its CityCenter project in Las Vegas. While admitting that financing has not been finalized, MGM Mirage CFO Dan D’Arrigo expects no delays in construction and the expected late 2009 opening of CityCenter.

Las Vegas (AP) -- Shares in MGM Mirage Inc. surged Tuesday after the company said it secured commitments for USD 1.65 billion of the final USD 3 billion in financing for its next major casino project on the Las Vegas Strip. The company said last week that a deal was delayed because of tight financial markets. Company officials had expected the deal to be in place in June or July, but on Tuesday said it would be done in the third quarter.

MGM Mirage, the world's second- largest casino company, plans to almost double gaming tables for high rollers at its Macau casino by year-end to tap the growing number of gamblers who spend more than USD 124,000 a visit. MGM Grand Macau, a venture between the Las Vegas-based company and billionaire Stanley Ho's daughter Pansy Ho, will increase its VIP tables by 70 to 150, Chief Executive Officer Terrence Lanni said on a conference call today.

MGM Mirage has announced plans for a joint venture on a non-gambling hotel in mainland China. MGM Mirage Hospitality plans to provide development and management services for the plaza project in Tianjin, China. The mixed project would include two towers, with a luxury hotel to be named MGM Grand Tianjin, condominiums and spa, office and restaurant facilities. The Chinese partner in the deal is Diaoyutai State Guesthouse.

or some time, the folks at MGM Mirage have touted the fact that CityCenter – all 18 million square feet of it – will open at once by the end of 2009. While there may be one heck of a grand opening for the USD 9.2 billion city-within-a-city on the Strip, actual opening dates for the various buildings will differ. This week, CityCenter Chief Executive Bobby Baldwin revealed more specifics in an interview with the Sun.

The cost to build MGM Mirage’s massive CityCenter development has cracked the USD 9 billion mark. In a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission, MGM Mirage said the construction budget for CityCenter had increased to USD 9.2 billion, which includes capitalized interest. The casino operator had previously estimated CityCenter’s construction budget was between USD 8.1 billion and USD 8.4 billion.

Las Vegas - MGM Mirage Inc., the largest casino operator on the Las Vegas Strip, told more than 400 middle management employees Monday they would be terminated immediately in a cost-saving move, the company said. The decision will save USD 75 million annually and came after the company saw weakness since August at its properties, which include Bellagio, MGM Grand, Mirage and Mandalay Bay, spokesman Alan Feldman told The Associated Press.

Dubai (Reuters) - State-owned Dubai World said on Wednesday it had no "immediate" plans to raise its stake in MGM Mirage, the world's second-largest casino operator, though it won the right to go as far as 14.9 percent. The Michigan Gaming Board allowed Infinity World, a unit of Dubai World, to raise its holding in MGM, Dubai World said in a statement. Still, that "does not necessarily mean that the company plans to increase its shareholding immediately," it said.

Two three-ring binders in the office of Monte Carlo President Anton Nikodemus are his most telling reminder of the rooftop fire two months ago that shut down the Strip casino for three weeks and continues to sideline roughly 16 percent of the hotel's 3,000-room inventory. Every now and then, Nikodemus will glance at the binders, which contain letters from Monte Carlo hotel guests, casino customers, and convention and meeting planners.

Dealers at MGM Mirage's 10 Strip casinos will be given a pay raise Monday, as much as 22 percent in some cases, as the gaming operator moves to implement a uniform pay structure for more than 5,100 of its workers. MGM Mirage President Jim Murren said Friday afternoon the raises, as high as USD 1.42 an hour for 60 percent of the company's Strip dealers, were needed to create a level playing field among its dealing work force.

Casino operator MGM Mirage estimates the repair costs and lost business due to the fire at the Monte Carlo hotel-casino will be close to USD 100 million. Company spokesman Alan Feldman says the company has insurance, but it’s not immediately clear how much of the claim will be paid for. The burned exterior facade along the roof of the building has been removed, and officials plan to reopen the casino and at least 1,200 of the hotel’s 3,000-plus rooms about sometime Friday.