Casino sales at South Korean casino operator Paradise Co Ltd nearly doubled in June. The company on Tuesday reported casino sales of KRW46.1 billion (US$39.6 million) for the month of June, up 99.2 percent from the prior-year period.
Judged month-on-month, June casino sales were down 22.8 percent compared to May.
The year-on-year increase in casino sales was sustained by a 107.9 percent rise in table game sales during the month of June, to KRW43 billion. Machine game sales rose by 25.1 percent year-on-year to approximately KRW3.1 billion, the firm said in a filing to the Korea Exchange.
Financial firm Korea Investment and Securities Co Ltd had said in a note last month that it expected Paradise Co to see a “profit upturn” starting in June “on a low comparison base” from June 2015.
June 2015 was a poor month performance-wise for South Korean casinos. It coincided with what analysts have said was a significant and sudden decline in inbound tourism to the country, in the wake of an outbreak there of a disease called Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, known as MERS.
In Tuesday’s filing, Paradise Co said the numbers are for gaming sales at its casino division, comprising the properties Walkerhill, in Seoul; Jeju Grand (pictured) on Jeju Island; Incheon, near Incheon International Airport; and Busan Casino.
Paradise Co’s casino sales for the first half of 2016 reached approximately KRW299.8 billion, a 2.2 percent increase from the prior-year period.
Table game sales for the first half rose by 2.8 percent year-on-year to about KRW282 billion. Machine game sales declined 6.5 percent in the first six months to nearly KRW17.9 billion.
Table drop – defined by the company as the amount of cash exchanged for chips by customers at the table – for the first half of 2016 fell 2.3 percent year-on-year, to about KRW2.43 trillion.
“This year, [Paradise Co’s] profit should substantially improve on the base effect with operational profit likely to swell 47.2 percent year-on-year in the second quarter of 2016 and 89.2 percent year-on-year in the third quarter of 2016,” Korea Investment said in its June note.
