Macau: gambling revenue sees 70.5 percent fall in November Y-o-Y

According to figures released by Macau's government on Tuesday, gambling revenue in November amounted to 6.75 billion patacas ($845.34 million), a 70.5 percent drop year on year.

The decline was not as severe as in recent months as the world's biggest casino hub saw a pickup in visitors from its key market - mainland China, but was slightly higher than analysts' expectations of a drop of around 60-65 percent.

Revenue plunged 72.5 percent in October and 90 percent in September, Reuters reports.

Gaming revenues have slumped since February due to coronavirus travel restrictions.

According to data released after a Council for the Development of Tourism meeting last month, in the first week of November, the local hotel occupancy rate reached 45 percent, a slight improvement when compared to October. Currently, all travelers from China are required to hold a negative virus test certificate before coming to Macau. However, the validity of the test may not coincide with that requested by casinos.

Moreover, as of mid-November, Macau recorded a daily average of tourists that exceeded 20,600.

These data represent a slight improvement compared to the daily average of around 19,000 visitors and 38.1 percent of hotel occupancy rate recorded in October, a month that had also recorded ‘daily average of around 19,000 visitors, an increase of 26% compared to the daily average for September’.