Cambodia hopes to create travel bubble with select countries

A travel bubble may speed up recovery for the Cambodian gaming industry, which is largely dependant on foreign visitors.

Cambodia.- The country is hoping to initiate a travel bubble with China, Japan and South Korea in order to boost international tourism and help initiate a recovery for the country’s gaming industry.

John DeCree, an Industry analyst at Union Gaming, wrote: “The Cambodian Ministry of Tourism (MOT) is working on a plan to establish a tightly-secured travel bubble with China, Japan, and South Korea, that would further help improve international tourism.

“Like the previous reopening, we suspect pent-up demand will return quickly when operations resume. Looking ahead, Cambodia received nearly 1m vaccines so far, which should go a long way in combating the pandemic and helping to open up some international travel.

Last week, a travel ban was placed on Sihanoukville province, preventing people from entering or leaving the casino hub.

At the moment, the Cambodian gaming industry largely dependant on expatriot residents due to the restrictions on Cambodians entering casinos.

NagaCorp

A major player in the Cambodian casino industry, NagaCorp closed its NagaWorld venue before the Sihanoukville lockdown after 11 of its staff tested positive for Covid-19. It is currently working with the Ministry of Health to ensure a safe reopening as soon as possible.

DeCree said: “Naga is uniquely positioned for a continued strong recovery with a deep local market and a large barrier to entry with its exclusivity in Phnom Penh, coupled with a robust long-term growth profile supported by continued organic economic growth in Cambodia and the planned Naga 3 development.”

On Monday, NagaCorp reported net profit of US$101.4m for its 2020 financial year as revenues fell 49.9 per cent year-on-year to US$878.7m, down from US$1.76bn in 2019.