Kangwon Land returns to black in 2Q results

Aug 10, 2021 Newsdesk Latest News, Rest of Asia, Top of the deck  

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Kangwon Land Inc – the operator of South Korean casino resort Kangwon Land (pictured) – recorded second-quarter net profit of nearly KRW20.9 billion (US$18.2 million), as compared to a net loss at KRW40.9 billion in the previous quarter and a loss of KRW45.56 billion a year ago, according to the firm’s unaudited financial results published on Tuesday.

Kangwon Land is the only casino resort in South Korea permitted to offer casino gambling to locals. The property had been permitted in June to double its maximum guest capacity for the casino floor, although such limit was still under 50 percent of pre-Covid 19 pandemic levels.

But the property later saw its casino’s maximum daily guest capacity further restricted in July, an adjustment that coincided with a tightening of social distancing rules in Gangwon province where Kangwon Land sits.

Despite Kangwon Land Inc turning to profit in the second quarter, the firm’s cumulative net loss for the first half of this year amounted to over KRW19 billion.

Second-quarter sales this year were KRW203.6 billion, a surge of nearly 488 percent on the KRW34.6 billion achieved in the second quarter of 2020. Judged quarter-on-quarter, sales were up 109 percent on the KRW97.4 billion tallied in the first three months of 2021.

Gaming sales in the second quarter were KRW183.9 billion, an increase of 550.4 percent on the KRW28.3 billion a year earlier. Measured sequentially, second-quarter gaming sales were also up by 115.3 percent from KRW85.4 billion in the previous quarter.

Second-quarter non-gaming sales were 210.4 percent up year-on-year, to KRW19.8 billion, and also 64.4 percent higher than the KRW12.0 billion achieved in the previous quarter.

Kangwon Land Inc saw an operating profit at KRW2.7 billion in the second quarter, a turnaround from operating losses recorded in the past four quarters.

Gross gaming revenue (GGR) for the second quarter was KRW203.8 billion, up 539.4 percent year-on-year, and also 107.3 percent higher than the KRW98.3 billion achieved in the first quarter.

Of the second-quarter GGR, a total of KRW82.7 billion came from mass gaming tables and another KRW74.0 billion came from slot machines. The property’s ‘Membership Club’ – a reference to a facility for premium players – generated GGR of KRW47.1 billion for the second quarter. Both the mass and premium gaming segments have marked sequential growth.

The results filing reiterated that Kangwon Land’s GGR is subject to a sales cap policy from the National Gambling Control Commission in South Korea.

The drop amount at Kangwon Land in the second quarter this year was KRW879.4 billion, up 506.7 percent year-on-year and also up 111 percent sequentially.

The tally of visitors to the Kangwon Land property – mostly locals – in the second quarter this year was 199,394, a sharp increase when compared with only 2,364 visitors a year ago, and just above 87,200 visitors in the first quarter this year.

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