Macau’s Entertainment Sector Poised for Sustainable Growth

Main Points from the Financial Report

The year-to-date outcomes for 2024 reached MOP208.58 billion, falling just MOP1.42 billion short of earlier annual projections.

Key figures for the reported period:

• 80.4% — the GGR level compared to pre-pandemic rates;
• 11.5% decline — revenue drop in November compared to the previous month;
• 98% — the percentage of October visitations compared to the pre-COVID period.

The decrease between the last two autumn months is attributed to the Golden Week, held from October 1st to 7th, which attracted more than 3 million attendees.

Local gambling venue owners showed mixed performance in November:

• the Macau Casino Operators Index declined by 2.4%;
• the Hang Seng Index dropped by 4.4%.

The region’s officials project this year’s total GGR to reach approximately MOP227 billion, basing their forecast on annual December performance trends. Industry experts estimate that December’s income could achieve 86% of 2019 levels.

Forecast for 2025: Opportunities and Challenges

The Secretary for Economy and Finance, Lei Wai Nong, set MOP240 billion as the target GGR benchmark for 2025, sparking intense debate among lawmakers.

Some officials view the goal as conservative, while other legislators express concerns that authorities might miscalculate revenues and additional aspects such as market competition. Citigroup’s specialists, however, offered a more optimistic outlook, projecting that 2025 GGR could reach MOP243 billion.

Despite challenges, Macau's entertainment industry continues its post-COVID recovery, showing steady improvement in overall results. This growth is supported by policy modifications, including new visa rules permitting weekly visits for Zhuhai’s inhabitants in the neighbouring region.

While positive trends are prevalent and significant, the gaming realm also faces challenges, including:

• reduced spending by Chinese visitors due to the economic downshift;
• stricter money-exchange regulatory rules;
• Beijing’s intentions to diversify the region’s economy beyond the casino sector.

These aspects pose challenges and restrain the growth prospects of the local gambling sector. However, the region’s administration has solutions for each concern and has the potential to steer the industry towards sustainable expansion.

Gaminator’s experts constantly monitor the current state of the gambling niche to keep clients informed of the latest news and updates. With our assistance, you can launch a profitable online casino business anywhere in the world or choose the most suitable gaming software for your entertainment project.