HONG KONG - The Macau government said Tuesday it will consider ways to curb the growth of the gaming industry, including limiting the number of gambling tables and raising the minimum age for casino visitors.

Francis Tam, Macau's secretary for economy and finance, met with the city's six casino operators Monday to discuss a review of the industry in the months ahead, a government spokeswoman told AFP.

The government said in a statement that the operators "have agreed that the size of the gaming industry should not undergo an unlimited expansion, and that the issue should be reviewed."

It said it will consult the sector and the public on issues including restricting the number of gambling tables.

According to the most recent figures available, by the middle of last year Macau's Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau had recorded a total of 4,390 gaming tables in their casinos.

Tam said in the statement that the government will over the next few months draft laws and regulations to raise the minimum entry age for customers from the current 18 years to 21, and ban slot machines from residential areas.

Macau, the only Chinese city where casino gambling is legal, has in recent years overtaken Las Vegas in terms of gaming revenue.

The growth of the sector accelerated after the government opened its gaming market in 2002 to overseas casino operators, including Steve Wynn's Wynn Resorts and Sheldon Adelson's Las Vegas Sands.

In August Macau's casinos saw record revenues of 1.5 billion dollars, slightly more than triple the Las Vegas Strip's 471.25 million dollar average monthly casino revenue during the 12 months to June.

Analysts hailed the results as evidence of a recovery from the effects of the financial crisis which earlier hit revenues, as did visa restrictions placed by Beijing on Chinese visitors, who form the bulk of Macau casinos' clientele.

Industry players interpreted the visa curb as an attempt by Beijing to cool the over-heated growth of the gaming sector.

However, Wynn Resorts recently tapped into the returning confident mood, raising 1.6 billion dollars through an initial public offering (IPO) in Hong Kong of a stake in its Macau arm last Friday.

Las Vegas Sands is also planning an IPO of its Macau operations in Hong Kong later this year, according to Dow Jones Newswires.