The average daily rate (ADR) of gaming revenue in Macau reached US $ 34 million in the week of March 8 to 14, according to Sanford C. Bernstein Ltd.
It is an increase of 6% in relation to the previous week. However, the accumulated ADR in March 2021 shrank 68% compared to the same period in 2019.
“Macau’s gross gaming revenue (GGR) during the second week of March improved slightly compared to the first week, even though VIP category service dropped below normal,” analysts pointed out.
One reason to explain the lower numbers is the slow implementation of online services for applying for individual visit visas from China. Another point is the lack of visitors from Hong Kong, as the city normally accounts for 15% of Macau’s revenues.
Sanford C. Bernstein Ltd predicted that travel between cities will only increase in the second quarter of this year. According to analysts, Macao’s recovery may have to wait until the second half of the year, but they estimate that the recovery of the local economy will be significant.
JP Morgan Securities Ltd said that to date, gross gaming revenue has reached approximately 30% of the levels recorded before the pandemic.
Optimistic forecast for the gaming sector in Macau
JP Morgan experts indicated that the Macau GGR for the first 14 days of March was US $ 462.7 million. “We expect revenue from the gaming industry to continue to improve exponentially from March through May,” said JP Morgan analysts.
Considered one of the safest places in the world at the moment in relation to the pandemic, Macau has registered only 48 positive cases since COVID-19 was identified in the territory, with no deaths caused by the disease, according to a report in Notícias ao Minuto.
Of this total, 46 were from abroad and Macau has had no new cases imported for more than a month. In addition, the site completed more than 350 consecutive days without local cases of transmission.
