HONG KONG: Gambling revenue in Macau plummeted 37 percent in May, marking one year of consecutive monthly declines as wealthy gamblers continued to steer clear of China’s casino hub.
In a trend that’s forcing casino operators to diversify into entertainment and retail business, revenue in the world’s biggest gambling center has been falling since President Xi Jinping began a crackdown on corruption targeting illicit outflows of money from China’s mainland.
Data released by the Macau government here the other day showed gambling revenue fell to 20.3 billion patacas (US$2.5 billion) from 32.4 billion patacas a year earlier.
Steep as it was, the drop was in line with analysts’ forecasts for a fall of around 38 percent. May’s tumble was also less than those recorded in the three previous months, helped by the fact that May included a national holiday, stoking leisure spending, as well as the opening of two new Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd resort projects.
The city, which relies on the gambling industry for over 80 percent of revenue, reported a 25 percent economic drop in the first quarter, the most since quarterly numbers became available in 2002.
Keen to cut that reliance, Macau has been forcing casino operators to diversify into other non-gaming business.
