When the PBOC popped the Chinese equity market bubble earlier in the week, American investors (and talking heads) were stunned by such limitations on speculative excess. However, as the following chart suggests, perhaps it was a public service they were doing as the demise of Macau’s easy-visa workarounds to currency controls has meant China’s habitual gamblers needed to find a new outlet for their cash…
“Customers who used to wager on casino tables are probably now sitting at home betting on stocks,” said Tai Hui, Hong Kong-based chief Asia market strategist at JPMorgan Asset Management. “Investors are levering up on margin trading, or ‘using a small knife to cut a large tree.’”
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Casino revenue in Macau slumped last month to 24.3 billion patacas ($3 billion), the lowest level since September 2012, while trading on the Shanghai and Shenzhen stock exchanges reached a high of 1.24 trillion yuan ($200 billion) yesterday.
Chart: Bloomberg
via Zero Hedge http://ift.tt/1Djugfm Tyler Durden