Macau’s January gaming revenues not a record, but still a 35 percent increase
Macau gaming revenues hit $3.13 billion in January, off from lofty projections, but still an increase of 35 percent over the same month a year ago.
Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau reported January gaming revenues on Wednesday.
January’s gaming revenues were helped by the Chinese New Year holiday. However, the figure failed to establish a new all-time monthly record, as some analysts had been predicting, coming in 7 percent below the record of $3.36 billion set in October 2011.
Las Vegas Sands Corp., Wynn Resorts Ltd. and MGM Resorts International operate casinos in Macau.
The month follows Macau’s 2011 total gaming revenues of $33.5 million, an increase of 42 percent over 2010. Some analyst said better picture of this year would come after February’s numbers are in.
"Given the shift of Chinese New Year into January, we believe February will pose a difficult comparison for the market, despite the extra day," Deutsche Bank gaming analyst Carlo Santarelli told investors. "As such, we believe looking at the aggregate of January and February for comparison purposes is more appropriate."
Contact reporter Howard Stutz at hstutz@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3871. Follow @howardstutz on Twitter.