Macau government says GGR to stay weak through H2 2015

Macau’s gross gaming revenue is likely to remain weak until the second half of 2015 and will probably worsen in October, the Secretary for Economy and Finance Francis Tam told local media.
GGR fell for the fourth straight month in September, declining 11.7 percent amid a sharp drop in VIP volumes. Revenue has been hurt by China’s crackdown on corruption, as well as a slowing economy.
According to Sterne Agee, the October decline in revenue is likely to be about 22 percent, hurt in part by comparisons with a particularly strong month in 2013.
Tam said that a new bridge being built between Hong Kong, Zhuhai and Macau, coupled with new integrated resorts that are scheduled to begin opening from next year should help the territory’s capacity to handle tourists.
Meanwhile, Nomura analysts downgraded their view on Macau stocks, in part driven by the fact that although tourist numbers from China have risen, visitors are spending less.
The Japanese firm expects GGR to fall 2 percent in 2014 and 3 percent in 2015.