Macau has decided not to shutter the StarWorld casino visited by a COVID-infected tourist, potentially marking a turning-point in its stance on how to handle future such cases.

Citigroup's latest table survey reveals that Macau players' gaming appetites appear largely unaffected despite low expectations ahead of Chinese President's visit to the city from December 18th to 20th.

Analysts at Jefferies are largely in line with the Macau government’s estimates for gross gaming revenue in 2025, at $30.57 billion, a 2 percent increase from recently announced official estimates.

A recent table survey from Citigroup reveals a significant acceleration in gaming spending in Macau, with the average wager for high-stakes players—commonly referred to as ‘whales’—increasing by 43 percent.

Following Citigroup’s Macau Gaming Corporate Day, where all six casino operators were hosted, the investment bank maintains a bullish stance on Macau gaming companies' oulook. 

The Global Service Index (GSI), a service quality indicator of the Macau gaming industry, reached its highest level in 2023, with croupiers' performance rising.

Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG) announced an encouraging third quarter of 2023, with net revenue rising to HK$9.7 billion ($1.24 billion), representing a 374 percent year-on-year increase.

The mass-led recovery in Macau is persisting, with the mass market table drop surpassing 2019 levels by 5.7 percent at the integrated resorts of Galaxy Macau in 2Q23. Additionally, the mass table win was approximately 1 percent higher than in 2Q19, according to a report by CBRE Securities.

Macau’s six gaming concessionaires have celebrated the signing of their contracts with the government, cementing a years-long process of speculation, financial instability and lengthy negotiation.

Macau has recorded three more local cases of COVID, although authorities have not given indication that the discovery could prompt another lockdown or mass testing event.