Costs shooting up for casino projects in Singapore

The last thing Las Vegas Corp. needs is more financial worries.

News surfaced today out of Singapore that resorts being built by Las Vegas Sands and Malaysia’s Genting International are both over budget.

The revised costs for Las Vegas Sands’ Marina Bay Sands now stands at $5.4 billion, compared with an earlier estimate of $4.5 billion and an initial estimate of $3.2 billion. The company has said it hopes the project will open by the end of the year.

Genting’s Resorts World at Sentosa, scheduled to open early next year, will cost $4.3 billion, compared with the previous forecast of $3.9 billion and the initial $3.4 billion.

The Singapore news came the same day that the Chinese government proposed easing the visa restrictions that are currently in place to curtail the number of visits mainland China residents can make into Macau.

Also, the South China Post in Hong Kong said construction of the Macau-Hong Kong-Zhuhai Bridge could begin by the end of the year.

"We believe that if the proposal were formally implemented, it would be a strong positive for Macau operators," Oppenheimer gaming analyst David Katz said in a note to investors.

Still, the positive news out of China didn’t deflect negative news from Singapore. Shares of Las Vegas Sands fell to $2.60 on the New York Stock Exchange Friday, closing at new all-time low. Shares dropped 15 cents of 5.45 percent.