New Zealand’s SkyCity Entertainment Group has revealed its casinos in Auckland and Hamilton have been “profitable and cash positive” since reopening on 14 May following a seven-week closure due to coronavirus.
In a trading update detailing the company’s progress over the 18 days since re-launch, SkyCity said its domestic business had exceeded expectations at its flagship Auckland property and in the smaller SkyCity Hamilton, with EGM revenue already at 80% of average daily revenue for the eight months to 29 February 2020. Table games revenue is back to 50% after a slow start, which has reflected social distancing requirements, the company said.
Hotel occupancy remains low at 32% but has reached 90% on weekends due to special offers, with room rates on average 35% lower than usual.
The New Zealand government is due to review its COVID-19 response next Monday 8 June with the possibility of dropping the nation back to Alert Level 1 to be considered, paving the way for restrictions to be eased even further.
Nevertheless, SkyCity said it expects its business to be domestically focused for the foreseeable future with the company currently embarking on an employee reduction scheme that would reduce costs by around NZ$50 million per year.
New Zealand has currently gone 12 consecutive days without any new cases of coronavirus.
