Macau’s mass market gaming revenues are on track to hit 100% of pre-COVID levels by October, according to investment bank JP Morgan, following ongoing signs of recovery through the first nine days of July.
In their weekly channel check, JP Morgan analysts DS Kim and Mufan Shi said GGR from 1 to 9 July is estimated to have reached MOP$4.8 billion (US$599 million) at a daily run rate of MOP$530 million (US$66 million) – exceeding the MOP$500 million (US$62.5 million) per day estimate through 2Q23.
“While we note this period benefited from two weekends, this is a very solid print,” Kim and Shi said. “In fact, it’s again the highest non-holiday GGR since the pandemic and bodes well for upcoming summer holidays.
“At this level, we believe mass GGR is comfortably running at 90%+ of pre-COVID level, and we continue to expect 100%+ recovery in mass by October.”
July’s momentum comes after the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau reported industry GGR of MOP$15.21 billion (US$1.88 billion) in June, a slight 2.3% decline compared to May but still the second highest monthly tally since January 2020.
JP Morgan previously outlined its expectation that Macau’s operators will report all-time high margins when Q2 results are released over the coming weeks.
