Casinos in Macau, the world’s biggest gambling hub, reported a record drop in gaming revenue as they grappled with the cost of closing down for 15 days to help contain the COVID-19 outbreak.
Gross gaming revenue was 3.1 billion patacas (US$386.5 million) last month, down 87.8 percent from a year earlier, according to data from the Macau Gaming Inspection & Coordination Bureau.
In a survey, analysts had predicted a median 90 percent slide.
Photo: EPA-EFE
The slump follows a decision by Macau’s government to suspend casino operations from Feb. 5 for just over two weeks, dealing another blow to the gambling mecca that was already struggling to recover from a revenue decline last year.
The closure only the second such instance after a typhoon in 2018 forced a 33-hour shutdown.
Even after the partial resumption of business from Feb. 20, gaming floors have seen few footfalls as China continued to halt individual and group visas to Macau, and restrict transportation in a prolonged fight against the spread of the virus.
Casinos are about to take “an extremely bumpy ride” this year, according to a Feb. 25 note by D.S. Kim, an analyst at JPMorgan Chase & Co in Hong Kong.
Kim estimated that gaming revenue would drop 24 percent and industry earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization would fall 30 percent this year.
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