Social distancing to cap Genting Malaysia visitation

Friday 19th of June 2020

Social distancing measures will cap capacity at Genting Malaysia and it may take two to three years before visitation gets back to 2019 levels, Affin Hwang Capital Research said in a note, cited by The Edge.

The group is maintaining its sell rating on Malaysia’s only casino operator, which resumed operations at Resorts World Malaysia and in the U.K. this week.

"Despite the resumption of activities, the social distancing requirement will put a cap on its current capacity,” it said “We believe that the visitation numbers will still remain under pressure despite more facilities re-opening soon, as Malaysia has yet to open its borders to foreign tourists.”

The brokerage said about 20 percent of visitation in 2019 was from overseas tourists and Malaysia is likely to be highly cautious about opening its borders due to concern about a second wave of Covid-19 cases.

With the opening of the new outdoor theme park expected for 3Q21, the research house believes that it would take at least 2-3 years before the visitation numbers recover to 2019 levels.

Resorts World Genting (RWG) opened from 10 am on Friday, but with its casino accessible only to Genting Rewards members for the time being.

The casino operator has introduced enhanced safety measures in place to ensure the health and safety of all its guests and employees.

“Public entry into the casino will resume as soon as possible, ” it said.

The cable car and express buses will also resume operations.