Macau premium mass spending rising despite fewer players, Citi says
Average wagers jumped 27 per cent year-on-year in August, reinforcing premium mass as a key driver.
Macau.- The premium-mass segment in Macau continued to show resilience in August, according to Citigroup’s latest monthly casino table survey. The report suggests that while there were fewer players, those present were spending more.
Citi observed 525 premium-mass players during the month, down 16 per cent year-on-year. However, total wagers rose 7 per cent to HK$14.3m (US$1.8m), while the average wager per player increased 27 per cent to HK$27,284 (US$3,500).
The brokerage said the results suggest that concerns over Macau’s weaker gross gaming revenue (GGR) performance in June and July were “likely overdone”. “It appears Premium Mass is once again the saviour which drags GGR out of negative territory,” Citi analysts George Choi and Timothy Chau said.
Citi identified 31 “whales” during its August survey. Their average wager jumped 54 per cent year-on-year to HK$243,548 (US$31,200). The largest wager observed was HK$820,000 (US$105,100) at Wynn Palace’s Chairman’s Club. Wynn led Citi’s survey with a 29 per cent share of total wagers observed, up from 18 per cent a year earlier.
The brokerage expects GGR growth to normalise following the disruption linked to the FIFA World Cup. Citigroup cut its forecast for Macau’s August gross gaming revenue (GGR) to MOP23bn (US$2.86bn). It reduced its previous estimate of MOP23.5bn (US$2.92bn), after the market’s daily run rate softened in the second week of the month. The revised forecast represents 4 per cent year-on-year growth, down from Citigroup’s previous projection of 6 per cent.
