Macau Casino Revenue Climbs 44 Percent in 2021, But Industry Remains Unsettled

January 3, 2022 Earnings & Filings

Macau casinos fared significantly better in 2021 than they did in 2020. But the world’s richest gambling market still has far to go to return to pre-pandemic levels. A slew of unsettled issues and regulatory matters pose considerable threats to such a rebound.

Macau’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau — stylized DICJ in Portuguese — relayed this morning that gross gaming revenue (GGR) totaled MOP86.86 billion (US$10.82 billion) in 2021. The haul represents a 43.7 percent on 2020.

December GGR came in at $991.5 million, a 1.8 percent year-over-year improvement. 2020 and 2021 marked the Macau gaming industry’s two worst revenue years since 2006.

Macau is a Special Administrative Region of the People’s Republic of China.

Casino Shares Drop
Macau’s six licensed commercial casino operators are set to see their concessions expire in June. That, along with the COVID-19 pandemic and the recent embargo on VIP junket groups led by mainland authorities, resulted in a mass sell-off of Macau casino stocks in 2021.

Many of those concerns linger as the new year begins.