Macau’s casino industry seems to have returned to the path of growth as gross gaming revenue (GGR) accomplished by gaming properties in the Chinese special administrative region (SAR) grew roughly 33 per cent year-over-year to settle at more than MOP10.32 billion (approximately $1.27 billion).

As per stats released by the Gaming Inspection & Coordination Bureau (DICJ), Macau casinos’ total gaming revenue in the month of February 2023 was 33.1 per cent higher than the corresponding month of 2022. Month-over-month, gaming revenue slipped 11 per cent. In the month of January, the Chinese SAR’s casino industry generated GGR of MOP11.58 billion (approx. $1.43 billion) – the highest since the first month of 2020.

Nevertheless, last month’s GGR marked the third-best monthly performance since January of 2020 irrespective of the end of the festive season and the month’s fewer number of days than the preceding month. More precisely, GGR of $2.74 billion was reportedly for the month of January 2020, while GGR of $ 1.43 was reported for January this year. Thus, the February 2023 level of $1.27 billion marked the region’s third-best performance in three years.

On a year-over-year basis, this year’s February GGR is still merely 41 per cent of the amount of MOP25.04 billion (approx. $3.1 billion) generated in February 2019.

Market analysts quickly pointed out that this year’s figures testify to Macau casino industry’s complete recovery as two months in a row recorded increase in gaming revenues. At the peak of Macau’s first main COVID outbreak in July 2022, casino industry’s gaming revenues slipped to as low as MOP398 million (roughly $49 million).

The recovery of the casino industry is also reflected in the recent lifting of pandemic-related restrictions. From the start of this week, Macau casino operators no longer require the staff and clients to wear face masks inside their casino resorts, thanks to relaxation provided by the government. The milestone for the upturn in the SAR’s gambling activities was 8th of January this year, when casinos were reopened after numerous months of closure.

The Chinese New Year holiday period also provided a big boost to the long-awaited recovery of the casino industry in January. During the holiday period, visits from China, Taiwan and Hong Kong resumed, which resulted in an almost 300 per cent year-over-year jump in visitor count settling at roughly 450,000.