Industry News | 03 May 2021

With a 1.1% month-over-month gain in casino GGR, Macau continued its comeback in April

In Macau, the process of economic recovery is ongoing. According to updated figures for April totals, the area brought in MOP$8.4 billion in gross gaming income. This is equivalent to US$1.05 billion. As compared to profits in March, this represented a rise of 1.1%. On

May 1, information was made available by the Gambling Inspection and Coordination Bureau.

Information about the Growth

Although it increased month over month, the gross gaming income total for April 2019 was still less than the pre-pandemic totals. The region's profits in April reached their highest level since January of previous year. The rise is a clear evidence that the recovery process is progressing successfully.

Gross gambling revenues in Macau have reached MOP$32.0 billion ($4.0 billion) thus far in 2021. This is an increase of 2.6% from 2020. The rise in sales occurs soon after the neighbourhood tourism office released the visitor statistics. The number of visitors to the area on April 16 was the largest daily total in 15 months. On that day, little over 34,000 individuals travelled to Macau.

The increase in visitors surpasses the previous record of 32,647 set on March 26. The number of tourists appears to be heading up, which is encouraging since it means that people are starting to travel more, and Macau is once again a popular destination. The expectation is that the numbers will rise as the year progresses.

Expecting Labour Day Surge

The Macao Government Tourism Office's Deputy Director stated in late April that more travellers are anticipated around Labor Day. According to Cheng Wai Tong, reservations for Macau's numerous hotels are increasing according to the most recent booking data.

The results from May 1 are anticipated to be the best for Macau since the epidemic started. While discussing tourist statistics, Cheng predicted that daily visitor volumes for the week around Labour Day will surpass the higher totals from April and surpass the 34,000 threshold.

Introduction to Digital Currency

The Chinese government is dealing with a trial using digital yuan currency as tourism numbers rise. To enable the usage of the blockchain-powered money in Macau casinos, financial regulations will alter. The money will be under the supervision of the People's Bank of China, allowing the administration to track its movements.

Authorities believe that the use of digital money will improve customer service and enable hotels to reduce the expense of converting local currency into Hong Kong dollars.