Inside Asian Gaming

inside asian gaming JUNE 2015 6 Rocky Road Ahead N ot long ago, the only thing analysts covering Macau gaming disagreed about was how fast it would grow and which operators would benefit most. Analysts speaking at this year’s Global Gaming Expo Asia (G2E Asia), against a backdrop of 11 consecutive months of declining casino revenue as new resorts begin to come on line, disagreed on a host of issues, including whether gaming revenue or stocks have found a bottom, the timing and shape of any possible recovery, the impact of additional market supply into the teeth of this downturn and much more. After gross gaming revenue hit a record high of 38 billion patacas (US$4.75 billion) in February last year, it slowed to a trickle during the next three months and began to decline in June. President Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign in mainland China is widely seen as the principal reason for the decline. Last year, gross gaming revenue declined by 2.6%—the first ever annual fall since the liberalization of the industry in 2002. Feature In Focus Even optimistic Macau gaming analysts don’t expect recovery until next year By Muhammad Cohen