The gross receipts of Macao's 20 casinos saw a year-on-year rise of 14.9 percent in the first quarter, according to official statistics issued Monday.

The figures released by the government-run Statistics and Census Service (SCS) showed that the receipts stood at 12.59 billion patacas (US$1.57 billion) at the end of the quarter.

The gross receipts reached 4.63 billion patacas (US$551 million) in March alone, a 15.1-percent rise over the same month of last year, the figures show.

The government of the Macao Special Administrative Region has collected 4.41 billion patacas (US$551 million) in direct gaming taxes in the first quarter, a year-on-year rise of 15.4 percent, according to the statistics issued last month by the Finance Services Bureau.

Macao's 20 casinos pay 35 percent of their gross receipts as direct tax to the government.

The region, with a population of over 480,000, has a 150-year history of gaming industry and is the only part of China where casino gaming is legitimate.

(Xinhua News Agency May 16, 2006)