NZ closures costing casinos A$1m a day

The closure of SkyCity casinos and F&B outlets in New Zealand and the partial closure of its hotels have been costing the company around A$1m (US$727,500) a day.

SkyCity said its New Zealand properties have been closed from August 17 as a result of level four restrictions imposed across the country as the Covid-19 Delta variant continues to spread.

The company made the comments as part of its FY21 results filing, adding that it is unable to provide detailed earnings guidance due to the uncertain near-term outlook of Covid-19.

Despite the country recording its highest daily surge in cases, New Zealand’s Covid response minister said the country will not “throw in the towel” with its Covid elimination strategy. There are currently 246 active cases in the country.

The New Zealand prime minister reiterated that the country will continue to pursue the “zero-case” strategy through lockdowns until enough of the population is vaccinated.

According to Our World in Data, approximately 21.4 per cent of the country is currently vaccinated.

Source: Asia Gaming Brief