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Macau
Hong KongPolitics

Chinese premier Li Keqiang gives Macau his seal of approval

In what some see as a message to Hong Kong, prime minister speaks of ‘new measures and policies’ that will help diversify gaming hub’s economy

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Premier Li Keqiang (right) and Macau Chief Executive Fernando Chui enjoy the view from an observation deck on the Macau Tower. Photo: SCMP Pictures
Niall Fraser

Premier Li Keqiang heaped praise on Hong Kong’s sister special administrative region on Monday, hailing Macau as a “treasured lotus land, a beautiful and special place” as he began a landmark three-day visit to the casino-dominated city.

Security was tight for the occasion, which also saw the arrival of Portuguese Prime Minister Antonio Costa and a host of top political leaders from Africa and South America for a two-day international conference beginning on Tuesday.

The meeting aims to boost China’s economic relationship with the developing world and chart a new course for the world’s most cash-rich gaming hub.
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A delegation led by the city’s Chief Executive Fernando Chiu Sai-on, his predecessor Edmund Ho Hau-wah and Wang Guangya, director of the Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office, greeted Li on the tarmac of Macau International Airport on Monday morning.

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In bright sunshine, Li – on his first-ever visit to Macau – delivered a speech full of praise for a city at a crossroads as it tries to cope with the reality of its first-ever, full-blown gaming slump, while at the same time attempting to diversify its casino-dominated economy into other areas.

Macau is simultaneously attempting to reshape its gaming industry into a mass-market, Las Vegas-style tourism attraction after decades as a hardcore casino hub for high-rolling VIP gamblers.

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