Macau’s record-busting revenue run in October was something a lot of people saw coming as the month was going on. The early rush coming from the Golden Week holiday set the tone for the month and the momentum it generated didn’t ease as the month went along.
Of the six operators in Macau, the biggest contributor to the MOP 36.5 billion in casino gambling revenue remained SJM Holdings Ltd. The biggest operator in the gambling destination accounted for 26 percent of the month’s gross gaming revenue, extending its lead from its competitors by tacking in another percentage point from its numbers in September.
Just like the record revenue, SJM’s continued hold of the top spot in market share didn’t catch a lot of people with their pants down. But what did, at least to a certain extent, was Sands China losing its second spot to Galaxy Entertainment Group Ltd.
Yep, it wasn’t too long ago when Sands was right at the heels of SJM for market share supremacy, but in October, the Sheldon Adelson-owned company had to take a backseat to Galaxy Entertainment, which earned 21 percent of the market share table compared to Sands’ 20 percent.
Evidently, it was a case of Galaxy earning two percentage points from its September numbers and Sands losing the same share in the same month.
Wynn Resorts names second phase Cotai project ‘Wynn Diamond’
In related Macau news, Wynn Resorts’ extravagant 20.6-hectare site in Cotai is shaping up to be a massive project and the second phase of the development has officially been given a name: Wynn Diamond.
That establishment is expected to feature a lot of non-gaming facilities, including a 15,000-seat arena that will be called the Wynn Diamond Coliseum, to go with larger hotel rooms and a variety of retail and dining options.
Once both phases have been completed, Wynn Diamond is being pegged to complement the first-phase development, Wynn Palace, which is already under construction with a timetable to be completed sometime in early 2016. Unlike Wynn Diamond, Wynn Palace is going to house at least 500 gambling tables on top of the 2,000 hotel rooms, 10 restaurants, a nightclub, and a number of high-end shops. That’s a lot to develop, which explains why Wynn is shelling out $4 billion just for this phase alone.
