Macau satellite casinos concerned about lack of negotiations
There are fewer than nine months to go until the expected transition to management company arrangements.
Macau.- Satellite casinos in Macau are concerned that with fewer than nine months until the expected transition to a management company arrangement, discussions about their future have yet to begin.
Discussions on the future of satellite casinos will mainly involve the government and the main casino concessionaires. According to the Macao Daily News, some satellite casino operators want the government to use the relocation of gaming tables as negotiating tool, suggesting that the government should not give all gaming tables back to the main casino operators if satellite casinos close.
Before the revision of Macau’s gaming law in 2022, there were 18 satellite casinos in the city. Currently, there are 11 with around 450 gaming tables. Nine of these operate under SJM’s gaming licence.
Macau GGR reaches US$437m in first 6 days of April, Citigroup says
Analysts at Citigroup have estimated that Macau’s gross gaming revenue (GGR) for the first 6 days of April was MOP3.5bn (US$437m). The estimated GGR run rate was MOP583m (US$72.7m) per day. That’s a decline of 8 per cent compared to the daily rate from late March.
Analysts George Choi and Timothy Chau noted that April generally sees reduced activity before the Labor Day holiday in early May. Analysts said VIP gaming volumes dropped by 6-7 per cent sequentially, while Mass GGR fell by 7-8 per cent.
They have forecast that April GGR will be down 3 per cent year-on-year at MOP18bn, 76 per cent of April 2019’s level. Citigroup also predicted that daily revenue would be around MOP604m (US$75.4m) for the rest of the month.
In March, GGR was MOP19.66bn (US$2.46bn). That’s an increase of 0.8 per cent in year-on-year terms but a dip of 0.4 per cent sequentially. GGR was 76.1 per cent of March 2019’s level. For the first quarter of 2025, Macau’s GGR was MOP57.66bn (US$7.20bn), up 0.6 per cent from the prior-year period. However, this figure remains 24.7 per cent lower than the first quarter of 2019
