Casino shares jump on Macau travel quarantine exemption

As of tomorrow people travelling from Macau to nine cities in China’s Guangdong province will no longer have to quarantine.

Macau.- Casino shares jumped as authorities in nine cities in China’s Guangdong province agreed to lift quarantine measures for travellers from the gambling hub of Macau as of tomorrow (Wednesday July 15).

Macau and Guangdong have been looking to reach a regional travel agreement including Hong Kong but the process has been delayed due to a recent spike in Covid-19 cases in Hong Kong.

People leaving Macau will have to present a negative Covid-19 test result taken within seven days. They will be able to travel without quarantine to Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Zhuhai, Foshan, Huizhou, Dongguan, Zhongshan, Jiangmen, and Zhaoqing.

Shares of casino operators Las Vegas Sands and Wynn Resorts jumped by 9.6 and 11 per cent respectively following the announcement.  

Shares in MGM Resorts International were up 6.8 per cent and Melco Resorts & Entertainment up by 18 per cent.

According to Market Watch, there was also an impact in the prices of exchange-traded funds (ETF) with exposure to casino stocks. The VanEck Vectors Gaming ETF rose 4.65 per cent and Roundhill Sports Betting & igaming ETF rose 0.9 per cent.

Sanford C. Bernstein analyst Vitaly Umansky said: “We expect some pent-up demand to materialize in Macau fairly rapidly as travel restrictions come down.”