News Analysis China’s widely reported crackdown on the gaming industry of Macau arises from a mixture of opportunism and ideology, with the former an overriding factor, according to observers. The desire to eliminate perceived threats to Beijing’s dominance, and the economic motive of keeping gaming revenue from leaving China, are driving forces in this latest Chinese Communist Party (CCP) offensive. The aggressive moves that the Chinese regime has taken against Macau’s casinos have alarmed Western businesses concerned about the renewal of their gaming licenses next year. Nowhere is the chilling effect more evident than in global stock markets, where Sands China, Wynn Macau, and other corporations have seen their shares plummet in value by a figure approaching $20 billion in total. China is upping the number of gaming inspectors it stations in the former Portuguese colony, with a view to rooting out alleged corruption in the casinos; setting strict limits …