Banking institution Citigroup says the Macau gaming industry is showing a “solid start” in terms of gross gaming revenue (GGR) in early March.
“Based on industry sources, Macau GGR for the first eight days of March is likely to have reached circa MOP5.65 billion [US$701.9 million],” wrote analysts George Choi and Timothy Chau in a Monday note.
“This implies a daily run-rate of about MOP706 million, circa 4-percent lower than the GGR run-rate in February 2026 – at MOP737 million a day –, but around 11-percent higher than that in March 2025, at MOP634 million a day,” they added.
According to the Citi team, a number of shows hosted by the city’s casino operators in early March contributed to the year-on-year increase in gaming revenue.
“We believe concerts by Korean boy band Treasure at the Venetian Arena, Chinese singer-songwriter Wang Sulong and Korean girl group Aespa at Galaxy Arena might have contributed to Macau’s solid start in March 2026,” the analysts stated.
“Based on industry sources, VIP volumes fell” by between “circa 2 percent to 4 percent month-on-month, and mass GGR fell by between “circa 3 percent to 5 percent month-on-month,” they noted.
“VIP hold rate appears to be slightly above normal,” the analysts added.
The institution said it was “conservatively” keeping its March GGR forecast unchanged at MOP22.5 billion, which would reflect a 14-percent year-on-year increase. Citi’s forecast implies an average of about “MOP733 million a day for the rest of the month”.
In a mid-December memo, Citi suggested that more concerts, additional hotel suite supply and new baccarat side bets could help boost Macau’s 2026 GGR by circa 6 percent year-on-year.
