Macau authorities are holding strong to their estimate that the SAR’s gross gaming revenue will reach MOP130 billion ($16.2 billion) in 2021, despite underperformance in the first half.
The region’s Secretary for Economy and Finance on Thursday told reporters that the MOP49 billion in casino GGR from the first half of the year was “approximately 25 percent less than expected”, having been based upon an easing of travel restrictions between Macau and Hong Kong during the period.
The official is looking to the second half of the year to make up the slack, namely the October 1st “Golden Week” holiday – linked to China’s National Day, as well as the December holiday period.
He is also looking at the end of this year to launch a public consultation on the drafting of amendments to the city’s current gaming industry law.
Angus Chan Chi-lap, head of Hong Kong strategy at UBS Global Research earlier this week gave an optimistic outlook for Macau casino stocks in the medium to long term, with the expectation of pent-up demand and growth in hotel rooms from 2019 to 2022 fueling sentiment.
Chan added that the loss of VIP customers in Macau should only have a mild impact on profitability since mass-market customers had contributed around 80 to 90 percent of EBITDA pre-pandemic.
