Macau chalks up a substantial drop in annual casino tax revenues

The government of Macau has reportedly announced that 2020 saw the annual tax contribution from the city’s collection of almost 40 casinos plunge by 73.6% year-on-year to stand at approximately $3.73 billion.

According to a report from GGRAsia citing official data from the enclave’s Financial Services Bureau, the figure for the twelve months to the end of December came after the local casino industry experienced an analogous 79.3% decline in aggregated annual gross gaming revenues to around $7.56 billion following a long-lasting and severe coronavirus-related drop in tourism and player numbers.

Significant subsidy:

Macau is home to some of the world’s largest and most famous gambling venues including the iconic Casino Grand Lisboa from SJM Holdings Limited and Melco Resorts and Entertainment Limited’s $3.2 billion Studio City Macau. All of these operations are reportedly required to pay a 35% gross gaming revenues tax alongside smaller duties for every live dealer table, gaming machine and VIP room they operate that takes the effective rate up to roughly 39%.

Future fretfulness:

The source moreover reported that officials in the former Portuguese territory passed a revised budget in December that had predicted tax revenues from gaming for 2020 would reach only about $3.69 billion. They have subsequently forecast a slow recovery for the local casino industry with aggregated annual gross gaming revenues for 2021 hitting in the region of $16.27 billion, which would represent a 55% diminution from the $36.62 billion chalked up for the whole of 2019.

Added anxiety:

Adding a further bad note and a November report from the Financial Services Bureau purportedly calculated that ‘harsh’ economic conditions relating to the coronavirus pandemic are expected to continue throughout 2021 with any significant recovery set to ‘take time.’