Macau GGR down 14% month-on-month through September 20, UBS says
Macau’s average daily GGR reached US$75.5m in the first 20 days of September, with UBS pointing to weakness in the premium segments.
Macau.- Average daily gross gaming revenue (GGR) in Macau stood at approximately MOP610m (US$75.5m) between September 1 and 20, according to a research note from UBS. The figure represents a 14 per cent decline compared to August and would be flat year-on-year. It’s also below the market expectation of around MOP650m to MOP670m in average daily GGR for September.
The investment bank said the sequential decline was driven by weakness in the premium segments, with mass-market daily revenue estimated to be down 13 per cent to 16 per cent month-on-month, while VIP volume declined 15 per cent to 18 per cent. UBS estimated VIP hold at 3.4 per cent to 3.7 per cent during the period.
The bank noted that the decline was more pronounced than the historical seasonal pattern, with Macau’s average daily GGR typically falling by around 5 per cent between August and September during the 2015-2019 period. UBS also pointed to the implementation of individual income tax rules governing offshore trusts as coinciding with the recent weakness in premium segments.
On a weekly basis, average daily GGR increased to approximately MOP614m between September 14 and 20, compared with around MOP586m in the previous week. UBS attributed the improvement primarily to volatility in VIP hold.
