Your Daily Asia Gaming eBrief: Which casinos are open?

Good morning.

Macau’s recovery is front and center on this exciting Monday morning. Last Friday, Macau saw the highest visitation numbers since the start of the covid-19 pandemic, recording over 34,000 visitors. The news is similarly good for the upcoming May Golden Week holiday. We also look at the figures released from the DICJ, which has found the mass market segment far outpacing VIP in Q1. In Japan, revenue figures across the nation show that online betting for local horse racing, perhaps in part driven by the pandemic, are hitting all-time record figures. Finally, our exclusive piece today is a snapshot of all the property openings and closures across Asia. If you’ve lost track of which casinos are open, closed, or open but restricted – refer to this document, you won’t be disappointed.

First, the news

Macau’s mass market baccarat half of GGR in Q1
Macau sees travel demand from China in May Golden Week
Asian economy set for 6.5 percent growth in 2021
Packer agrees distancing measures from Crown with regulator
SkyCity earnings recovering faster than expected: S&P
Online betting boosts Japan’s local horse racing
15 arrested in China over crypto gaming app

What you need to know

Macau visitor numbers on upward trend

Macau’s slow but steady recovery continues to show evidence after recording its highest daily record of visitor arrivals since the start of the pandemic on Friday, with a total of 34,252 visitor arrivals. Chinese bookings for Macau during the five day Golden Week holiday in May are up 20 percent over 2019 levels. Macau is the only international destination for Chinese travellers that will not require them to undergo a 14-day quarantine upon their return to China.

Mass market dominance grows in Macau in Q1

Macau’s Q1 gross gambling revenue breakdown clearly shows the mass market pulling ahead of the VIP sector, which is struggling to recover from the double-whammy of Covid and policy pressures in China. During the first three months of the year, mass market baccarat made up 51 percent of the MOP23.64 billion ($2.95 billion) in GGR, with the VIP sector at just 38 percent.

Online betting boosts Japan’s local horse racing

Revenue figures across the nation show that online betting for local horse racing, perhaps in part driven by the pandemic, are hitting all-time record figures. Since the 1990s, the NAR had been in structural decline with lower revenues and facilities that were often sinking into a dilapidated state. In recent years, however, digitization has begun to turn things around.

Insights

DEEP DIVE

Which casinos are open?

With so many lockdowns and restrictions happening across Asia’s gaming jurisdictions, it is easy to lose track of which casinos are currently open, closed, or open with restrictions. Just how much did lockdowns disrupt casino operations in each country? To answer this question, Asia Gaming Brief has put together a snapshot of the industry on a country-by-country basis as of April 19, 2020.