Russia tries to join the Asian gaming boom

On Russia’s far east coast, Vladivostok has lined up two Asia gaming operators to build casinos there. The region hopes to cash in on being closer to northern China than Macau.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Japan tiptoes toward casinos

Legislators took another small step toward legalizing casinos in Japan this week. Backers hope so-called integrated resorts will open in time for the 2020 Olympics, but the political and bureaucratic process will be a marathon, not a sprint.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Macau investors overreact to bad news

Shares in Macau casinos have taken a beating following a string of bad news. But industry insiders dismiss the news as noise. While there are issues ahead for Macau, they say the big picture remains bright.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Investors demand more from Macau

Macau’s gaming revenue rose 9.3 percent year-on-year in May to more than $4 billion, the fifth highest monthly total ever. That news sparked a brutal selloff in Macau casino shares, as investors expected even better numbers. Some analysts insist sellers are missing Macau’s big picture.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.

Never forget the June 4, 1989 massacre in Beijing

Last week, I saw Mike Chinoy’s excellent new film, Assignment: China – Tiananmen Square. In it, the longtime CNN Beijing correspondent and current senior fellow at the University of Southern California US-China Institute tells the story of the 1989 Beijing protests and subsequent massacre through the eyes of the reporters that got the news out of China by whatever means necessary.

On the night of June 4, the rulers of China showed their true face to their own people, and, thanks to correspondents like Chinoy, to the world. Let us never forget the hundreds, if not thousands killed for the crime of wanting a better government.

Totally globalized native New Yorker and former broadcast news producer Muhammad Cohen is a blogger for Forbes and author of Hong Kong On Air, a novel set in his adopted hometown during the 1997 handover about television news, love, betrayal, high finance, and cheap lingerie. See his bio, online archive and more at www.muhammadcohen.com; follow him on Facebook and Twitter @MuhammadCohen.