Macau March GGR Set To Be 75% down On Previous Years

Macau’s difficult trading period looks set to continue. The semi-autonomous region has been undermined by a range of prevailing headwinds in recent months, and these seem poised to continue having a de-stabilizing impact in the weeks to come.

The devastating impact of COVID, allegations of money-laundering and illicit cross-border activity, augmented by an imminent change to its gaming regulatory processes, has seen Macau’s market struggle enormously over the last eighteen months.

Local commentators have predicted that March will see gross gaming revenue decline by 75% versus the like-for-like 2019 performance. This number drops yet further when comparing the first week of the month in isolation, with this year’s progressive March numbers hitting MOP 1.1bn ($135m) in revenue, around 78% behind the 2019 curve.

This concerning trend comes amidst the backdrop of a new spike in coronavirus cases, hailed as the worst uplift in infections since the onset of the pandemic. Neighbouring Hong Kong have already entered a rigorous mass testing campaign in an attempt to curb the spread, and rising numbers in neighbouring Guangdong continue to hamper inbound travel. The Chinese mainland province traditionally provides Macau with its highest proportion of visiting punters. Those looking to travel into Macau still need to record a negative COVID test 48 hours before their anticipated arrival.

Hong Kong’s recent issues casts doubt on their proposed border re-opening with mainland China, which, by extension, also means a delay to ease of access into Macau from the special administrative region. The commencement of two political sessions in China have also served to compromise the volume of travelling numbers, with mainland residents still typically able to enter Macau providing they observe all COVID rules and regulations.

There is talk of a return to the electronic dispensing of individual and group visas, which could potentially aid the acceleration of increased footfall into the region. However, it’s doubtful whether this alone will reverse the micro-state’s fortunes.

Macau’s industry stakeholders hope these issues don’t dampen commercial performance to the extent predicted by local analysts.