Nearly half Macau casino tables reopen after coronavirus closure

A total of 3,100 gaming tables have resumed operation since the reopening of casinos in February, representing 46% the total of 6,739 tables.

On February 20, casinos in the region resumed their activities in phases after the Macau SAR government ordered a mandatory 15-day casino shutdown to combat the spread of Covid-19. According to data from the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau (GICB), up to March 9, a total of 38 of the 41 casinos had reopened, with only one casino not presenting a request to resume activity, while two casinos remain closed, managed by Sociedade de Jogos de Macau, as they had their operating authorisation suspended several months ago.

The bureau said that since the reopening, it has carried out several inspections in the casinos and has detected 28 cases of non-compliance with the Health Bureau’s guidelines, namely the distance and arrangement of gaming tables and seats, as well as the non-use of masks by customers in casinos, Macau Daily Times reports.

Prior to the resumption of the city’s casinos, the government required gaming operators to adopt certain measures, such as filling out health declaration forms and the mandatory use of face masks. The government also imposed body-temperature checks at casino entrances and an increase in space between gaming tables to avoid a large number of people from concentrating in a small area.

Macau casino operators were told to reopen at the stroke of midnight on February 20, unless they applied for a grace period if they considered themselves not ready to resume operations. Six casino concessionaires could apply to the government for a maximum of 30-day closure extension period during which time they will not be required to operate. After the extension period elapses, the casino operators are required to resume normal operations.

As a result of the closure as well as the very small number of people visiting Macau, particularly those from Mainland China, gross revenues of casinos in February fell 87.8% year-on-year to 3.104 billion patacas (USD 388 million), compared with 25.370 billion patacas in February 2019. The gross revenue recorded in the first two months of the year registered a drop of 49.9% to 25.229 billion patacas (USD 3.153 billion), against 50.312 billion patacas (USD 6.289 billion) in the same period of 2019.

Gaming analysts expect little improvement this month with brokerage JP Morgan Securities (Asia Pacific) Ltd. forecasting that revenue may still plunge as much as 80%. Meanwhile, a note from brokerage Sanford C. Bernstein states that gross gaming revenue was 1.4 billion patacas through the first eight days of the month, down 79% year-on-year. Assuming that travel restrictions are still in place by the month-end, Bernstein predicts the city’s revenue to tumble between 75% to 85% year-on-year this March.

Also cited in the note, Melco Resorts & Entertainment and Wynn Macau are outperforming their rivals due to their weight in the VIP sector. The research house states that the VIP segment is performing better during this outbreak period.

April’s gross gaming revenue performance will be influenced by several factors, including whether restrictions to issuing the Individual Visit Scheme permits for mainland residents to travel to Hong Kong or Macau will be lifted, as some expect. These restrictions have reduced the entry of tourists and gamblers from the mainland into Macau.

At the end of 2019, Macau had 41 casinos, two of which had been provisionally suspended, 22 managed by Sociedade de Jogos de Macau, six by Galaxy Casino, five by Venetian Macau, two by Wynn Resorts (Macau), four by Melco Crown (Macau) and two by MGM Grand Paradise, with 6,739 gaming tables and 17,009 slot machines.