A Citigroup snapshot survey of Macau casino table operations done on the third day of Chinese New Year (CNY) observed a premium mass wager total of HKD21.0 million (US$2.7 million), which the institution said was the “third-highest tally” on its records.
The number of observed players in the premium mass category stood at 799, said the bank, making it the “second highest” since the ending of Covid-19 restrictions in January 2023.
Average wager per premium mass player – something Citi said was a “gauge of player quality” – was “very solid“ at HKD26,224, and the fourth-highest figure in its survey records.
Analysts George Choi and Timothy Chau drew attention in the note to the fact that their market visit this year took place on the third day of the lunar new year holiday period – when typically Chinese consumers start to make trips outside their home or family circle. That might have been too early in proceedings to account for mainland tourists coming from further afield than Guangdong province next door to Macau.
“We conducted our Chinese New Year 2024 survey on February 16, the second-to-last day of the Chinese New Year Golden Week, when most of the players were already on the ground and had not left Macau yet,” stated Citi.
The number of observed big players – “whales”, in casino parlance – with a bet size of HKD100,000 or more, increased to 49 from 41 in the 2024 holiday season.
“These 49 whales wagered an average of HKD210,000… per hand, largely par versus Chinese New Year 2024,” added the analysts.
What the bank termed its player of the month was seen at Wynn Palace’s Diamond Club and placed an HKD800,000 bet.
The second-highest bet seen in the latest survey was from a whale at a reserved table at Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd’s Galaxy Macau and its Horizon Room, placing an HK$550,000 bet.
“Honourable mentions” included a whale at Wynn Macau Ltd’s Wynn Encore at the Wynn Macau resort in the downtown gaming zone, and another at the Signature Club of City of Dreams, run by Melco Resorts & Entertainment Ltd, each with a “HKD500,000 bet”.
Citi said it judged that Wynn Macau Ltd , which also operates Wynn Palace on Cotai, was “regaining share in premium mass”.
The bank’s analysts reiterated some earlier comment about the value of so-called smart tables in optimising mass-market baccarat, the main product category on Macau floors.
“On our count, we believe Sands China [Ltd] and Wynn Macau [Ltd] have joined MGM China [Holdings Ltd] and Galaxy [Entertainment Group Ltd] and become 100 percent smart in their mass baccarat operations. We also saw 62 new smart tables at City of Dreams’ grind mass area and 63 at Grand Lisboa.”
Macau received more than 1.01 million visitors in the first six days of the eight-day mainland China holiday period
The start of this lunar new year was January 29. China’s State Council has declared the holiday for the Chinese mainland – the largest source market for Macau tourists and Macau casino players – as an eight-day period running from January 28 to Tuesday (February 4) inclusive.
