Wilbur Ross looking at casino sector

By Caroline Humer

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Billionaire investor Wilbur Ross said on Tuesday he is actively looking at investing in the casino sector in the United States and internationally, including in Macau.

"We're getting very interested in the casino sector," Ross said during the Reuters Restructuring Summit in New York.

He said the tax peculiarities related to Native American-owned casinos made it a "little less likely" that he would invest in that area. "But in the other sectors, both here and abroad, we are looking quite actively," he said.

Many casinos are struggling with large debt burdens and declining cash flows as gamblers cut back on spending in the global economic downturn. U.S. casino operators have been considering sales of individual properties, and some have been forced to halt construction projects.

Some companies are also looking at selling assets in the Chinese gambling enclave of Macau to support struggling operations in Las Vegas. Ross said he was interested in properties in the United States as well as Macau.

He said he expects to continue investing in areas where he already has made purchases, such as railcar leasing, auto parts and financial institutions, including CIT Group Inc CIT.N.

BANKS, RAILCARS, AUTOS

Ross, who purchased troubled BankUnited (BKUNQ.PK) in May after it was seized by U.S. bank regulators, said he had teamed up with Starwood Capital Group to bid this past weekend on the assets of Corus Bank. The unit of Corus Bankshares (CORS.PK) was seized by regulators early this month.