Tough odds for Macau as casinos pray for a pandemic shift

A file photo showing tourists pushing their luggage in the lobby of The Londoner casino resort in Macau. - AFP

HONG KONG (AFP): When Pinky Tam lost her job in Macau last year, she found herself among the many thousands cast adrift as the city's casino industry crumbled beneath the twin forces of politics and a pandemic.

The former Portuguese colony has been limping for nearly three years as coronavirus restrictions have kept away mainland Chinese tourists, depriving the gaming sector of its chief revenue source and tanking the wider economy.