Macau casinos: gaming taxes reach US$8.31bn in first 9 months of the year

Macau’s gaming tax revenue rose by 45.1 per cent year-on-year.

Macau.- The Financial Services Bureau has reported that Macau collected MOP66.40bn (US$8.31bn) in taxes from casino operations in the first nine months of the year. The figure was up 45.1 per cent when compared to the same period last year.

In September, the Macau government collected MOP7.62bn (US$952m). That’s a 6.4 per cent rise compared to the preceding month. GGR for the month was MOP17.25bn (US$2.15bn). The figure was up 15.5 per cent year-on-year but down 12.7 per cent compared to the previous month. It was the lowest monthly tally of the year and was also down by 21.8 per cent compared to September 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic.

Last January, Macau’s new 10-year gaming concession system began with an effective tax rate of 40 per cent on casino gross gaming revenue (GGR). Cumulatively, Macau’s GGR for the first nine months of 2024 was MOP169.3bn (US$21bn), up 31.3 per cent year-on-year but below the same period in 2019 (US$27.4bn). Gaming taxes accounted for 83.1 per cent of the Macau government’s overall revenue in the same period, with total revenue reaching nearly MOP79.92bn (US$9.97bn).

According to the 2024 budget plan, the government aims to collect MOP83.61bn (US$10.4bn) in gaming tax this year. In 2023, Macau collected MOP65.26bn (US$8.11bn), surpassing the budgeted amount by 28.3 per cent.

Tourism in Macau: 916,000 arrivals during October Golden Week

The Public Security Police has reported that 916,000 visitors arrived in Macau during the October Golden Week from October 1 to 7. The number of inbound and outbound trips during the holiday period reached 2.21 million, with the largest numbers at the Border Gate, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and Hengqin Port. 

Average daily visitation was 138,000, surpassing the estimate of 100,000. The peak was on Friday (October 3), with 174,234 visitors. The Macau Hoteliers and Innkeepers Association has reported that the city’s average hotel occupancy rate peaked at 95 per cent, with an average room rate across all tiers of hotels and inns at MOP1,860.8 (US$232.4). The average room rate for all types of guest rooms in Macau was 4.0 per cent higher than during the same holiday period in 2023.

The daily average of visitors from the mainland was 118,025, up 34.7 per cent year-on-year. Hong Kong’s average daily contribution was 16,715, down 21.8 per cent compared to the previous year.