Philippine Casino GGR To Hit 85% Of Pre-Pandemic Revenue By Year End

Summary

• Philippine Casino GGR to reach 85% Pre-Pandemic Revenue
• Ease in Travel Restrictions to Boost Casino Revenue
• Resorts World Manila opens new Hotel Okura

Morgan Stanley Asia Ltd. predicted this week that the Philippine casino industry’s gross gaming revenue (GGR) could recover and hit 85 percent of pre-pandemic performance by the fourth quarter of 2022.

Ease of travel in Southeast Asian countries during the second quarter, and relaxed pandemic control guidelines released in March 2022 could boost the recovery.

Ease in Travel Restrictions to Boost Casino Revenue

Referring to the upcoming presidential election, analysts Gareth Leung and Praveen Chaudhary said that election-induced consumption and pent-up demand could contribute to the rise in the GGR. While Philippine casino operators are yet to report their results for the first quarter, private-sector players like the Solaire Resort and Casino might rake in an aggregate GGR of US$515 million. The estimated amount would equal 68 percent of pre-pandemic levels in the first quarter of 2019, depicting a 15 percent quarter-on-quarter increase.

The group suggested that the recovery in mass and slot revenue would account for 82 percent of pre-pandemic performance in the first quarter of 2019, showing a quarterly improvement of 17 percent. Analysts indicated that given the ease in travel restrictions, the revenue from casino resorts is likely to rise.

In a separate note released on April 19, Morgan Stanley hinted that there might be stronger opportunities for investors in casino markets across Southeast Asia due to the lack of travel ease for the Macau gaming industry. The latest government data reported a footfall of about 265,553 visitors from February 10 to April 17.

Casino resorts in the Philippines have been operating at 100% capacity since March 1. The country had announced to welcome fully vaccinated foreign visitors from April 1, akin to Singapore. Unlike Greater China, the relaxations were in line with the policy of living with the pandemic. The development came as several locations, including Metro Manila, were placed under ‘alert level 1’ in March.

Resorts World Manila Opens New Hotel Okura

Recently, Hotel Okura Manila had its opening ceremony at the Resorts World Manila complex on April 19. Philippines’ Tourism Secretary, Bernadette Romulo-Puyat was present at the ceremony along with the Resort Manila CEO and president Kingson Sian and CMO Hakan Dagtas.

Referring to the relaxed conditions for tourism and business, Romulo-Puyat said that the country was expecting an increase in tourist footfall in the following months as more locations are placed under alert level 1 status.