¡¡  MACAO, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- Macao's gaming and betting industry logged gross receipts of 34.71 billion patacas (4.34 billion U.S. dollars) in the first eight months, a year-on-year rise of 12.6 percent.

    The statistics issued Monday by the government-run Statistics and Census Service (SCS) showed that in August alone, the gaming and betting business recorded gross receipts of 4.67 billion patacas (584 million U.S. dollars), setting a new monthly record.

    The previous monthly record stood at 4.62 billion patacas (578 million U.S. dollars) in this March.

    Macao's 22 casinos pay 35 percent of their gross receipts as direct tax to the government.

    The region, with a population of over 500,000, has a 150-year history of gaming industry and is the only part of China where casino gaming is legitimate. Enditem