This follows earlier remarks about several sightings of the fugitive businessman there.

Visitor arrivals to the world's biggest gambling hub dropped by 36.8% on the month and 54.3% year-on-year to 366,511 in November, reports say.

The stakes could not have been higher for the six companies, who depend on Macau's gambling industry for their profitability but have been bleeding billions of dollars due to China's strict Covid-19 rules.

The Chinese territory had been observing Covid-19 safety measures without any strict lockdowns until it found an imported coronavirus case on Oct 26.

All residents in the world's biggest gambling hub have been told to take a PCR test and then test themselves daily with rapid antigen tests.

Authorities locked down the MGM Cotai casino resort owned by MGM China on Sunday with staff and guests ordered to stay inside until Nov 1.

By the end of 2021, Macau had a total of 6,198 gaming tables operating and 11,758 machines. That was down from a high of 6,739 tables in 2019, prior to the COVID-19 outbreak.

The move comes days after Macau started to unwind stringent anti-Covid rules, including the resumption of travel to Zhuhai without quarantine from Aug 3.

The announcement comes after the city government said that people could enter the neighbouring mainland Chinese city of Zhuhai without quarantine

Health authorities will require residents to wear masks when they go out and must show a negative coronavirus test within three days to enter most venues.

The tally of infections since June 18 stood at 1,816, the government said in a statement, as the city grapples with the fast-spreading Omicron variant for the first time.

While casinos will reopen, there will likely be no business for several weeks, executives and analysts say, with many Covid rules set to remain in place.