Macau casinos reopen with US$186 million loss as gamblers stayed away during Typhoon Mangkhut’s onslaught
Macau casino stocks retreated after Typhoon Mangkhut forced a 33-hour shutdown of the world’s biggest gambling hub, a halt that’s estimated to cost operators including Sands China and Wynn Macau as much as US$186 million in revenue.
Nearly all casinos in the enclave, a one-hour ferry ride from Hong Kong, reopened at 8am local time Monday, after a government order closed their doors at 11pm Saturday night as the storm approached. The Bloomberg Intelligence index for Macau casinos fell as much as 2.1 per cent in early Monday trading in Hong Kong, with Galaxy Entertainment Group and SJM Holdings leading losses.
The casino shutdown is expected to cost Macau from 1.1 billion patacas to 1.5 billion patacas (US$185.6 million) in lost gaming revenue, estimated Union Gaming Securities Asia analyst Grant Govertsen. Industry employees said it was the first time Macau shut down gambling since licenses for casinos were given out in 2002.
The storm disruption is expected to dampen casino revenue in Macau, with Govertsen and other analysts lowering the hub’s outlook. September’s revenue growth rate could be affected by as much as 7 percentage points, said Govertsen, who almost cut in half the firm’s previous forecast of a 15 per cent increase. The storm’s impact is likely to cut third-quarter revenue growth by 2 percentage points, to 12 per cent, he wrote in a note.
“This robs the month of one important weekend day,” which typically generate significantly higher gaming revenue than midweek days, Govertsen said in an interview. It will take a day or so for traffic to return to normal given how many flights and ferries were cancelled, he added.