Macao China

Portugal has agreed to return the territory of Macao to China in 1999 in accordance with Chinese wishes, sources close to the negotiations in Lisbon said. The two countries are expected to sign an agreement on the transfer after a final round of talks in Peking later this month, the sources said. Chinese leaders have said they want Macao to become a special administrative region--much like Hong Kong, 40 miles away, which reverts to Chinese control with the end of British rule in 1997.

Wu Peng hurried out of the ferry terminal here Thursday afternoon, scampered across the bus-jammed street and headed straight for the Venetian Macao, the world's largest casino, which opened this week. For the next 24 hours, the pharmaceuticals trader from Shenzhen, China, was glued to a baccarat table, like thousands of other Chinese. Wu, 40, had no interest in strolling down the Venetian's mall under its faux blue sky, swimming in the six pools or riding in a gondola.

Alan Tam is playing Vegas these days. Never heard of him? Some say he's a Chinese Mick Jagger. Comedian Crocket performed over the summer at Caesars Palace. He's the Robin Williams of Japan. In almost every way, Las Vegas is catering to Asians, offering Asian entertainers, high-stakes baccarat tournaments and rice congee by room service. The festivities and decorations for Chinese New Year have become second only to those for New Year's Eve.

The casinos shimmer in the smoggy skyline like blocks of golden ice, walling off the century-old colonial buildings and dense working-class neighborhoods perfumed with Portuguese-inspired bakeries. The two dozen gambling houses and luxury hotels have ignited an economic boom in this territory of half a million residents that last year dethroned Las Vegas as the most lucrative gambling destination in the world, according to figures released by the cities' gaming authorities.

On a sultry April evening, a young man walked up to nurse Rosa Yiu Bo-la and fatally shot her with a Chinese military-issue pistol. The slaying, officials said, was retribution directed at her husband, a former court bailiff reportedly connected to the organized crime gangs, or triads, that are suddenly tearing this city apart. But the killing--which authorities have included among 15 professional hits here this year--sent shock waves to nearby Hong Kong and to Beijing.

Since the Chinese government crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators in Beijing last month, Hong Kong's nearly 6 million residents have cast a jealous gaze at Macao, long considered the British colony's poor relation across the Pearl River estuary. Seated at his desk at the Macao government hotel school, Alexandre Ho pondered the thin green booklet that is the cause for Hong Kong's envy: a Portuguese passport.

Henrique Pedruco was born in this tiny enclave and has lived here for all of his 56 years. But on Monday, Pedruco will wake up a stranger in his native land as Macao reverts to Chinese rule after 442 years under Portuguese control. "All of a sudden, I'm a foreigner in my own homeland," laments Pedruco, who will maintain Portuguese citizenship after the hand-over. "That's the worst part." Pedruco is certain he'll stay on in Macao.

A moderate pro-democracy group was the biggest winner in Macao's legislative election, provisional results showed. The New Democratic Macao Assn. of Ng Kuok Cheong won 18.2% of the vote and two seats, allowing him and his running mate, Au Kam San, to retain their places in the legislature. A total of 125 candidates ran for 12 elected seats in the 29-member assembly. Ten lawmakers were picked by professional and business groups; seven are appointed by Edmund Ho, the enclave's chief executive.

Gaming company Las Vegas Sands Corp. plans to develop and own a resort in Macao that will be managed by Fairmont Raffles Holdings International, the two companies said Wednesday. The resort will include 1,500 rooms and be part of the Cotai Strip development on Cotai, an area of reclaimed land between the islands of Taipa and Coloane in Macao, the companies said.

American billionaire Stephen A. Wynn will make one of his biggest gambles this week, when he opens a sleek, $1-billion hotel-casino in Macao -- the booming Chinese territory that could soon bump off Las Vegas as the world's gaming capital. Wynn is betting that his lavish rooms and trendsetting casino, which opens Wednesday, will attract the Chinese gambling masses eager to wager the money they've been raking in from the country's sizzling economy.

Alan Tam is playing Vegas these days. Never heard of him? Some say he's a Chinese Mick Jagger. Comedian Crocket performed over the summer at Caesars Palace. He's the Robin Williams of Japan. In almost every way, Las Vegas is catering to Asians, offering Asian entertainers, high-stakes baccarat tournaments and rice congee by room service. The festivities and decorations for Chinese New Year have become second only to those for New Year's Eve.

AS the ferry from Hong Kong pulled into the terminal slip, I peered through the rain-fogged windows at a huge, glowing red sign: "SANDS." Farther along the waterfront, I could make out the looming hulk of a volcano -- of the man-made variety, erupting daily on schedule. In the taxi on the way to the hotel, I gawked at the towering skeletons of hotels and casinos that have turned Macao into a giant construction site.

American billionaire Stephen A. Wynn will make one of his biggest gambles this week, when he opens a sleek, $1-billion hotel-casino in Macao -- the booming Chinese territory that could soon bump off Las Vegas as the world's gaming capital. Wynn is betting that his lavish rooms and trendsetting casino, which opens Wednesday, will attract the Chinese gambling masses eager to wager the money they've been raking in from the country's sizzling economy.

Gaming company Las Vegas Sands Corp. plans to develop and own a resort in Macao that will be managed by Fairmont Raffles Holdings International, the two companies said Wednesday. The resort will include 1,500 rooms and be part of the Cotai Strip development on Cotai, an area of reclaimed land between the islands of Taipa and Coloane in Macao, the companies said.

By the time financial authorities cracked down on North Korea's dealings here, it was like the classic moment of feigned ignorance in "Casablanca" when Capt. Louis Renault declares, "I'm shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here."

A moderate pro-democracy group was the biggest winner in Macao's legislative election, provisional results showed. The New Democratic Macao Assn. of Ng Kuok Cheong won 18.2% of the vote and two seats, allowing him and his running mate, Au Kam San, to retain their places in the legislature. A total of 125 candidates ran for 12 elected seats in the 29-member assembly. Ten lawmakers were picked by professional and business groups; seven are appointed by Edmund Ho, the enclave's chief executive.

By the time financial authorities cracked down on North Korea's dealings here, it was like the classic moment of feigned ignorance in "Casablanca" when Capt. Louis Renault declares, "I'm shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here."

The casinos shimmer in the smoggy skyline like blocks of golden ice, walling off the century-old colonial buildings and dense working-class neighborhoods perfumed with Portuguese-inspired bakeries. The two dozen gambling houses and luxury hotels have ignited an economic boom in this territory of half a million residents that last year dethroned Las Vegas as the most lucrative gambling destination in the world, according to figures released by the cities' gaming authorities.

Marking the fifth anniversary of China's assumption of power over Macao, Chinese President Hu Jintao praised the former Portuguese colony's economic success under Beijing's rule. The enclave of 450,000 has seen double-digit economic growth and a drop in its once-infamous gang violence -- improvements some attribute to the presence of Chinese troops. It has been buoyed by the revival of its gambling industry with the introduction of Las Vegas casino operators.

For six years, the Starbucks coffeehouse chain has expanded in Asia by selling its coffee to nations of tea drinkers. Now there's a new challenge. This month, the Seattle-based company opened an outlet in one of Asia's few genuine coffee cultures--the former Portuguese colony of Macao. "We don't want to compete directly with the local coffeehouses," said Pedro Man, president of Starbucks Coffee Asia Pacific Ltd. "We just want to be part of the scene." That it already is.