Macau Closes Second Best Month with $3.3 Billion in August

Another great thing to hear in the Chinese gambling news is that Macau’s gambling revenue started to grow again in August. Recent times were not so bright for the Macau casino market, the growth rate hit three-year low earlier this year.

The growth in August is due to the increased spending in the VIP market. Macau earlier opened its doors for the mass market, but still, most of the revenue comes from high-rollers. Casino Junkets also play an important role in the Chinese city’s gambling industry as well as Chinese poker rooms.

Macau is considered by some to be the world’s most lucrative casino spot. According to data posted on the Macau gambling authority’s website, the semiautonomous Chinese city’s revenue rose 5.5 percent to $3.3 billion in August year-on-year. Year-on-year in this case means August 2012 compared with August last year.

Macau’s casino revenues had double-digit growth rates in the last years, mainly because of high-roller gamblers from China. Last year, Macau’s gambling revenue hit $33.5 billion. For comparison: the Las Vegas Strip yields less than fifth of this sum. But China’s economy slowed down, and Macau’s gambling industry suffered.

July 2012 was particularly bad, with revenues rising just 1.5 percent. Well, it is still a growth, but still the lowest rate since the global recession in 2009. August 2012 was the second best month ever in the Macau gambling industry, the best being October 2011 with $3.37 billion. Comparing the first eight months of the year with 2011’s similar period, Macau gambling revenue rose with 15 percent.

The only place in China where casino gambling is legal is Macau. The former Portuguese colony profits well from its less rigid approach to gambling than the Chinese gambling laws. China transformed the city into the biggest gambling resort in Asia by inviting foreign casino operators.