Operator News
China – Galaxy bucks the trend with growth in Macau
By Phil - 2 March 2017
Galaxy Entertainment bucked the trend in Macau by posting an increase in EBIDTAS of 18 per cent year-on-year in 2016 and revenue gains of four per cent taking its total GGR for the year to to $52.8bn.
The operator said it ‘played lucky’ in Q4 2016 which increased Adjusted EBITDA by approximately $150m.
Galaxy Macau’s GGR for the year revenue increased by seven per cent year-on-year to $38bn whilstStar World’s decreased by nine per cent to $11.8bn.
Dr. Lui Che Woo, Chairman of GEG said: “We have delivered very credible and solid results given the challenging operating environment that we experienced for the majority of 2016. We have worked hard during the period to carefully control costs without adversely impacting customer service standards and to substantially grow our Mass Market business. Our portfolio of luxury hotels were virtually 100 per cent occupied during the year and we reported non-gaming revenue of $3.2bn an increase of 18 per cent year-on-year; this demonstrates our commitment to support the Macau Government’s efforts to diversify the economy and grow non-gaming revenue.”
The Macau gaming market finished the year on a positive note where from August onwards, GGR reported positive growth. In addition to the growth of GGR in the later part of 2016, the market also experienced a shift in the mix of gaming revenue from VIP to the Mass market.
Visitation to Macau in 2016 was 30.95m compared to 30.71m in 2015. However with the addition of new hotel capacity during the year overnight visitation has increased for seven consecutive months since June 2016 and was up 10 per cent year-on-year to 15.7m for the full year. For the first time in the last ten years, overnight-stay visitor arrivals exceeded same-day visitor arrivals. In 2016, the average length of stay of overnight visitors stood at 2.1 days. This is a particularly encouraging sign as new capacity has driven increased overnight visitation and it is estimated that overnight visitors spend more than day trippers.
In 2016 infrastructure designed to enable easier access to Macau and movement within Macau continued to progress and we look forward to the completion of these infrastructure projects. These projects will further enhance the appeal and easy of travel to and from Macau and travel within Macau for both Chinese and International visitors.
