Macau casino revenue hits post-pandemic high despite economic headwinds in China

The Macau Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau reported on Friday that gross gaming revenue in the gambling region rose 686% year-over-year in August to $16.66B patacas ($2.06B) against a soft comparable to last year when travel restrictions were in place due to COVID outbreaks in some regions. The monthly gross gaming revenue tally was also 3.3% higher from the level seen in July and above the consensus estimate of analysts for +678% growth. Despite growing economic headwinds in China, the Macau GGR monthly tally for August was the highest since the pandemic.

For the first eight months of 2023, Macau gross gaming revenue was up 263% year-over-year to $114B patacas, which was about 57% of the level seen at the same point in the pre-pandemic year of 2019. The return of live performances and industry conferences has boosted traffic in Macau over the last few months and the Macau hotel occupancy rate continues to improve.

Shares of Melco Resorts & Entertainment Limited (NASDAQ:MLCO) rose 0.71% in premarket trading on Friday. Wynn Resorts (WYNN) gained 0.91%, while Las Vegas Sands (LVS) added 0.40%.

Macau casino stocks: Wynn Macau (OTCPK:WYNMF, OTCPK:WYNMY), Wynn Resorts (WYNN), Sands China (OTCPK:SCHYY, OTCPK:SCHYF), Las Vegas Sands (LVS), MGM China (OTCPK:MCHVF, OTCPK:MCHVY). MGM Resorts (MGM), Galaxy Entertainment (OTCPK:GXYEF), SJM Holdings (OTCPK:SJMHF, OTCPK:SJMHY), Melco Resorts & Entertainment (MLCO), Studio City International (MSC).