Australia’s Star Entertainment Group says its domestic gaming revenue for the first five months of 2021 is up 37% over the same period last year following an easing of restrictions at its casinos in Sydney, Brisbane and The Gold Coast.
However, gaming revenue remains 10% lower and group revenue 12% lower than in 2019.
The trading update was provided on Thursday ahead of a presentation at the Macquarie Australia Conference 2021, with more than 100 ASX-listed companies representing various sectors coming together to outline their progress and development.
Star’s recovery has been led by its Queensland properties, particularly The Star Gold Coast where domestic gaming revenue for the period from 1 January 2021 to 1 May 2021 grew 18% compared with the same period in 2019, pre-COVID. Both domestic gaming revenue and total domestic revenue at Treasury Brisbane were up 3% on 2019.
Recovery has been slower at The Star Sydney, which faced far tighter COVID restrictions during the early months of 2021 following an outbreak in the city’s northern beaches area late last year. Star said domestic gaming revenue in Sydney remained 22% lower and total domestic revenue 24% lower through 1 May 2021 than the same period two years earlier
“VIP turnover remains negligible given the border closures,” Star said.
The company also noted that EGM revenue had already returned to growth seen pre-COVID but that table games were tracking below.
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