Macau has recently been one of the hottest destinations of the Chinese. However, it seems that the area failed to meet its expectations when it comes to the gross gaming revenue for this Golden Week, which lasted from Oct. 1 to Oct. 8.
A total of 35 casinos in Macau managed to aggregate gross gaming revenue of $142.33 million, which is as much as 12 percent lower compared to the same period last year. In other words, it seems that Chinese citizens were a bit less interested in visiting Macau’s gaming venues.
According to popular magazine GGRAsia, the figure was released by JP Morgan Securities (Asia Pacific), a brokerage firm based in Hong Kong. The company made an in-depth investigation of casinos and their profit during the Golden Week.
JP Morgan Releases Figures
Overall, the citizens of China have been pretty interested in taking part in gambling activities in Macau, especially during Golden Weeks. The one that is celebrated during the first seven days in October marks the creation of modern China, and it is usually the holiday when the number of visitors is the highest in Macau.
For the sake of comparison, JP Morgan also disclosed some interesting numbers about the last year, with the most important figure being the total gross gaming revenue for October 1-8 in 2018, when casinos in Macau managed to make a total of $160.89 million.
There are several reasons why the overall revenue was lower this year. One of the most important reasons is the ongoing trade war between the US and China, which has been indirectly affecting Macau for some time now. The other reason is the growing scrutiny of the VIP junket market in Macau.
JP Morgan Securities (Asia Pacific) Limited officials commented on the numbers, saying that they were “unexciting as well as expected.” Namely, the company predicted that the number of visitors and the gross gaming revenue would be smaller compared to 2018.
A Steep Drop
Another brokerage company called Nomura Securities Company Limited issued a report stating that the aggregated daily GGR in Macau had an increase of eight and 10 percent year on year when it comes to the Golden Week. On the other hand, they stated that the VIP market in the area hasn’t been doing so well as the numbers dropped approximately 22 to 24 percent in comparison to the same period of 2018.
Therefore, Macau is definitely not doing as well as last year. However, the area still seems very strong and growing, despite occasional fiascos such as this one. There are many factors that can influence its future, including the ones that we mentioned earlier. They are mostly external, but there are a couple of internal issues as well that need to be solved.
