Macau GGR reaches US$544.2m in first 12 days of February

Analysts at JP Morgan say the month-to-date figures show a 40-45 per cent recovery compared to pre-Covid-19 levels.

Macau.- JP Morgan Securities (Asia Pacific) Ltd estimates the gross gaming revenue (GGR) from Macau’s casinos in the first 12 days of February amounted to MOP4.4bn (US$544.2m). That translates to a run-rate of MOP367m per day, up slightly from around MOP357m a day last week, despite the expected dip after the Chinese New Year holidays.

Analyst DS Kim wrote that the month-to-date figures show a 40-45 per cent recovery compared to pre-Covid-19 levels and that mass GGR has recovered to 60-70 per cent in comparison with the first two months of 2019 (chosen to account for the fluctuations in the timing of the lunar new year).

Kim said February GGR is likely to surpass MOP9.5bn, or MOP350m a day, beating expectations.Macau’s January GGR saw a sharp increase of 232.6 per cent month-on-month after the end of the zero-Covid policies in mainland China and Macau and a surge in visits during Chinese New Year.

Several Macau casino operators have reported a significant improvement in business, and Morgan Stanley Asia Ltd noted that the demand for gaming in Macau remained strong in early February. It noted that flight frequencies mainland China to Macau have recovered to 70 per cent of pre-Covid-19 levels, which is a positive sign for the premium mass segment, which mainly travels by air.