Macau’s gaming operators recorded gross gaming revenues of MOP$19.8 billion (US$2.47 billion) in August, up 14.8% year-on-year and 6.2% higher than in July according to information from the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (DICJ).
It also represents 81.5% of August 2019 levels, when Macau GGR was MOP$24.3 billion (US$3.03 billion).
The month-on-month improvement is largely due to seasonality, while August also benefited from a favorable calendar that included five Fridays, five Saturdays and four Sundays – or 14 “weekend” days compared with only 12 in July.
For the first eight months of 2024 combined, GGR reached MOP$152.1 billion (US$18.9 billion), up 33.4% compared to the same period last year.
Industry analysts have forecast a gradual increase in revenues through the third quarter and into Q4 but have warned the recent crackdown by mainland and Macau authorities on illicit money exchange gangs could create some headwinds.
“We believe this crackdown round is having some negative impact on money flows into Macau and certain individuals have postponed their visits to Macau,” said Seaport Research Partners analyst Vitaly Umansky in a recent note.
“The activity will likely continue to be somewhat of a headwind to GGR over the next few months. However, we expect the crackdown to soften and liquidity in Macau to be not significantly impacted in the medium term.”
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