Tables turn against punters in Macao casino shares

For five years, Hong Kong investors could not go wrong on casinos. Now they are losing more than on any other stocks, and money managers from ABN Amro Private Banking to Macquarie Funds Group do not see the slump ending soon.

Gambling operators accounted for the five biggest declines on the MSCI Hong Kong Index this year, with the market value of companies in the industry dropping $75 billion this year through last week, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Sands China Ltd plunged 39 percent, wiping out $26 billion in value, as China's efforts to curb corruption spurred the first declines in Macao's gaming revenue since the global financial crisis.

With China facing the slowest economic expansion since 1990 and the government clamping down on extravagant spending, high-rollers are wagering less in the only place in the country where gambling is legal. Nomura Holdings Inc sees no end to the slide in Macao's gambling receipts, forecasting at least a 3 percent drop next year. Two-thirds of visitors to the world's biggest gaming hub come from the Chinese mainland.