The Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau of Macau has announced the results of its gaming revenue for the month of April.
Gross gaming revenue totalled MOP$14.7bn (US$1.8bn), which is a 450% increase year-on-year.
The initial median analyst estimate of the casino industry stood at a 393% rise, with April outperforming every month since January 2020.
Macau has taken a number of steps this year to instigate its tourism industry, including opening the borders between China on 3 February to allow for cross-border travel.
With the five-day Chinese Labour Day holiday starting this week, Macau released a report detailing that it expected at least 70,000 visitors a day on average.
Even so, according to the Statistics and Census Service of Macau, almost 2 million visitors entered the region in March 2023 alone. This is compared to 526, 912 in the same month of 2022.
This will no doubt be helped by the fact that Macau stands as one of the few territories in China where gambling is legal, with a history of wagering dating back to the 1850s.
Since then, the industry has grown into one of Macau’s biggest sources of revenue, with estimations ranging between 50% and 80% of the total economy.
However, the region is also in the midst of a labour shortage, with a number of resorts cutting services causing hotel room rates to increase.
In a recent Asia Bulletin, analysts explained why they thought Macau was poised for growth in 2023.
