Macau Casino Comeback Continues, as Gaming Revenue Climbs 19 Percent in June
Posted on: July 1, 2025, 09:19h.
Last updated on: July 1, 2025, 09:35h.
- Macau casinos enjoyed another strong gaming month
- June marked the fifth consecutive month of year-over-year gaming growth
- The premium mass market is reportedly fueling the comeback
Macau casino revenue continues to inch closer to pre-pandemic levels, with June marking the region’s fifth consecutive month of year-over-year growth.
The city’s Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau reports that the six casino operators won MOP21.06 billion (US$2.6 billion) from players in June 2025. That represented a 19% surge from May 2024, or a difference of $417 million.
Through the first half of the year, Macau casino revenue is up 4.4% to nearly $14.7 billion. The rally came after a poor start in January, where gross gaming revenue (GGR) was down almost 6%, which, paired with December 2024, marked two consecutive months of GGR slowing.
The February through June rush has come as a surprise to many, including gaming analysts focused on the Chinese gaming market after VIP junket groups closed in recent years. Junkets were most responsible for keeping Macau casinos’ high-roller rooms occupied, but after being threatened with criminal prosecution on allegations that they facilitate cross-border gambling and the exodus of money from the mainland through the tax haven, the travel organizers fled.
Macau Theories
With fewer VIPs gambling in Macau, and the six resort companies forced to invest billions into their properties, with most of the allocations required to go to nongaming projects, the casinos have switched their focus to the leisure traveler and so-called “premium-mass” gambler. It’s apparently working.
Macau’s casinos are diversifying with an array of new attractions and nongaming entertainment. Galaxy Macau hosting Hong Kong pop superstar Jacky Cheung, among the most influential artists in China, with a residency throughout June, was credited for bringing tens of thousands of visitors who might not have otherwise ventured into the Special Administrative Region.
Visitor arrivals to Macau in the first quarter were up 11.1%. The second quarter is trending to be even stronger.
Analysts at JPMorgan say recent floor checks suggest that premium-mass players, or gamblers who might not meet the traditional definition of a high roller by Macau’s standards, but have the bankrolls to bet $385 to $1,300 a hand on baccarat, are propelling the recent rally.
Stocks Surge
With June outpacing expectations, shares of the three US-based gaming companies that hold casino licenses in Macau popped.
In early Tuesday trading in New York, Las Vegas Sands and Wynn Resorts shares soared 7%, while MGM Resorts climbed about 5%.
Sands controls the largest share of the Macau market, and its Sands China subsidiary weighs heavily on the Las Vegas-based gaming firm’s financials. Sands’ dependence on China increased greatly amid the COVID-19 pandemic when the company opted to sell The Venetian Resort on the Las Vegas Strip just two months after Sands founder Sheldon Adelson died in January 2021. Sands sold its Pennsylvania property in 2018.
Wynn also relies heavily on Macau, as does MGM, albeit to lesser degrees than Sands.
Melco Resorts, another Macau concession holder, is Hong Kong-based but traded publicly in the US via the Nasdaq. Melco saw its shares surge 10% on the strong June GGR report.
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