The shifting nature of Macau’s casino floors has never more evident, with figures released by the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ) on Tuesday showing VIP revenue fell below 50% of the city’s total GGR in the three months to 30 June 2019.
VIP Baccarat, for so long the driving force behind Macau’s success, fell 15.6% year-on-year in 2Q19 to MOP$34.62 billion – comprising just 47.1% of GGR for the period. That compares with 55.4% in the same quarter last year and 53.2% in 1Q19.
However, it was a different story on the mass tables where baccarat revenue recorded a 22.8% year-on-year increase to MOP$29.61 billion – helping the SAR’s gaming operators maintain relatively stable revenue of MOP$73.56 billion for the quarter.
The contribution of mass baccarat to total GGR continue to grow as well, up from 32.6% in 2Q18 and 39.1% in 1Q19 to a sizeable 40.2%
Macau’s second quarter results come on the back of two consecutive months of year-on-year GGR growth, including a 1.8% rise in May to MOP$25.95 billion and 5.9% in June to MOP$23.81 billion.