Casino capitalism and social polarization in Macao

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to utilize the theory of global city, as advanced by Saskia Sassen and other scholars, to explore the relationships between global capital and social polarization in the newly‐established Macao Special Administrative Region (MSAR).Design/methodology/approachThis paper will give a picture of economic growth and its impacts to budgetary surplus, as well as the labour market in MSAR, by extracting statistical data from the Macao’s Yearbook of Statistics 2010 published by the government.FindingsThis paper demonstrates the powerful explanation of the global city theory in examining: the causes and consequences of the global casino capital in remodelling the MSAR’s economy and society; and the positive response of the MSAR government in dealing with the emerging problems under the patronage of the Central Government in Beijing.Practical implicationsTo extend the application of the Global City Theory to the MSAR, that was created upon retrocession of sovereignty to The People’s Republic of China in 1999, the MSAR government has adopted the liberalization policy of gaming and thus allowed global casino capital to channel into the city‐state since 2002.Originality/valueThe paper will help readers to understand the social conflicts and governance problems in the MSAR, as caused by the global casino capital.