Nevada gaming industry revenue has declined for the second straight month, and the third time in four months, according to figures released by the state’s Gaming Control Board. In June, casinos collected a total of $832.5 million from punters that was 6 percent less than the $885.8m taken in the same period last year. Things didn’t get much better on the Las Vegas strip where casinos collected just $483.7 million in June – a decrease of 4.5 percent alongside the $506.7m taken in the same period last year.
For the whole of Clark County, where Vegas is situated, revenue fell by a catastrophic 7.9 percent with it getting even worse in North Las Vegas (down 26 percent), Boulder Strip (down 22.8 percent), Laughlin (down 20.3 percent) and Downtown (12.75 percent).
It wasn’t all a downer for the state though. Reno, and other markets in the North of the state experienced a resurgence in revenues. North Lake Tahoe saw the best figures with an increase of 29.3 percent with Reno up 9 percent and Washoe Country seeing revenue up 7.3 percent. The figures for June being low meant that tax collections in July fell 27.5 percent to $38.3 million.
The losses weren’t as high as lost month when there was a 10 percent loss and the topsy-turvy nature of recent years means this time in September we could all be talking about an increase. In terms of the gaming industry as a whole it certainly looks as though some help from the online gambling industry will be welcomed when the first firms start operating. Even with that, the latest figures will spark some concern that Vegas is on a slippery slop down as far as revenues are concerned.
