Macau GGR up 7.5% in second week of June
Concerts attracted high-value customers.
Macau.- JP Morgan Securities (Asia Pacific) Ltd. has reported that Macau’s casino industry experienced a boost in gross gaming revenue (GGR) last week, with an improvement of around 7.5 per cent compared to the previous week.
According to analysts DS Kim and Mufan Shi, the rise was attributed to concerts that attracted high-value customers. They stressed concerts not only drew the “right type” of players but also attracted visitors from Marina Bay Sands, thus contributing to an overall lift in the industry’s GGR in Macau.
In addition to the concerts, JP Morgan also acknowledged the influence of other entertainment events. They cited the recent performances by South Korean K-pop group Blackpink at Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd’s new arena in Galaxy Macau, as well as the series of concerts by Cantopop artist Leon Lai Ming at Studio City, a casino resort operated by Melco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd.
JP Morgan’s analysis suggested that these entertainment events have proven to be instrumental in driving Macau’s gaming business. The positive momentum bodes well for the recovery of Macau’s mass business beyond pre-Covid-19 levels. The brokerage firm estimated Macau’s GGR for the first 18 days of June to be approximately MOP9.5bn (US$1.18bn), with a daily run-rate of MOP527m.
Based on these figures, JP Morgan predicted a further improvement in the GGR run-rate to approximately MOP570m per day for the previous week, surpassing even the non-holiday GGR record set in May.
Analysts also indicated that the month-to-date trends suggest their conservative forecast of MOP14bn (US$172.72m) and MOP14.5bn (US$179.15m) for June might be exceeded, with strong second-quarter results expected to outperform consensus estimates.
