DECEMBER IN MACAU

01/04/09 01:28PM EST
As expected, December was not a strong month in Macau. Total baccarat revenues fell around 7% from December 2007. Mass Market was the lone bright spot as revenues in that segment were flattish compared to last year. However, Rolling Chip (RC) revenues fell 10%. An optimist would point out that Mass Market is much higher margin revenue. True, but the overall picture could’ve been a lot worse. RC volume actually declined approximately 17%.

In terms of market share, the Mass Market breakdown was pretty consistent with recent months. Despite a small uptick in December, Wynn Macau continued on its recent trend of market share below its 2008 average. On the contrary, LVS and SJM suffered a slight sequential drop but both managed share above their respective 2008 averages.

Market share in the RC segment was much more volatile, although most of that volatility was hold related. Volume share was fairly consistent with recent trends. MGM, Galaxy, and Wynn all lost RC revenue share in December while LVS and SJM gained considerably.

The main takeaway from December is the consistent negative impact of the liquidity and credit crunch in the RC segment. We should continue to see material monthly drops in RC volume as a result.

Ugly Rolling Chip numbers
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