Macau: 2021 GGR will be down 65% from pre-covid levels
Fitch Ratings Inc predicts that Macau’s gross gaming revenue (GGR) will be down 65 per cent from 2019 levels, closing close to MOP102.4bn this year.
Macau.- Fitch Ratings Inc has predicted that Macau’s GGR will be 65 per cent below that of 2019, when the city registered MOP292.4bn (US$36.5bn) in GGR.
According to analysts, this year Macau will reach MOP102.4bn. For the first seven months of 2021, the city reported a total of MOP61.4bn (US$7.7bn) in GGR.
In April, analysts at Fitch Ratings Inc. said Macau GGR could reach half of pre-Covid-19 levels. However, the city was affected by local cases of Covid-19 and hundreds of cancelled flights. Despite this, the government of Macau predicted GGR could reach MOP130bn for 2021, a decline of 44.5 per cent from 2019 levels.
Analysts made a comparison with Singapore’s gaming area and predicted the industry should see a somewhat quicker recuperation because of its high immunization rate and solid domestic demand, and because it is beginning to open travel bubbles with Germany, Hong Kong and Brunei for vaccinated travellers.
Deutsche Bank downgrades Macau’s GGR predictions for 2021
After a drop in Macau’s GGR for August at MOP$4.44bn (US$554.5m), analysts at Deutsche Bank have reviewed their previous forecasts for 2021.
Deutsche Bank now forecasts full-year GGR of MOP$97bn (US$12.1bn), down 67 per cent from pre-pandemic levels.
The change comes after GGR declined by 47.7 per cent month-on-month in August, reaching the lowest monthly GGR figure since September 2020. Analysts had previously predicted Macau’s GGR for the year could reach US$19.29bn, up 155 per cent year-on-year.
Carlo Santarelli, managing director of Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., predicted third-quarter results would see nearly US$2.4bn in gaming results and the fourth quarter figure around US$3.5bn.
According to Santarelli, US$1.5bn in Q3 will come from the mass-market segment and US$917.9m from VIP tables.
As for the full-year GGR, US$7.7bn will come from the mass market segment, up 82 per cent year-on-year, while VIP tables will bring in US$4.3bn.
