Macau GGR slows in second week of October

Macau GGR fell 42 per cent due to the impact of Typhoon Koinu and the end of Golden Week.

Macau.- Analysts at Citigroup have reported that Macau’s casino gross gaming revenue (GGR) was down 42 per cent in the second week of October when compared to the first eight days of the month. GGR fell to MOP479m, down from MOP831m.

Analysts George Choi and Ryan Cheung attributed the decline to Typhoon Koinu, which disrupted public transport from the afternoon of Sunday October 8 to late morning on Monday October 9. This resulted in extremely low business volumes on the Monday. Analysts also observed a seasonal slowdown following the October Golden Week, which concluded on October 6.

Citigroup remains optimistic that traffic will gradually rebound, noting the upcoming performances by Cantopop singer Eason Chan on the last two weekends of the month. It has maintained its forecast of MOP19.5bn, approximately 74 per cent of the October 2019 levels. This forecast implies an average daily GGR of MOP594m for the remaining days of the month. For the first 15 days of October, GGR is estimated at approximately MOP10bn (US$1.24bn). 

Macau’s GGR for September was down 13.2 per cent month-on-month from MOP17.21bn (US$2.13bn) to MOP14.94bn (US$1.85bn). However, GGRT was up 404.2 per cent year-on-year. Cumulatively, Macau’s GGR for the first nine months of 2023 was MOP128.95bn, up 305.3 per cent compared to the same period in 2022.