Casino operator Genting Singapore PLC saw profits rise sharply at its Resorts World Sentosa (RWS) integrated resort in the three months ending Sept. 30, but warned that a slowdown may be looming due to the strengthening Singapore dollar. The Singapore-based subsidiary of Malaysian conglomerate Genting Bhd reported group revenue rising 16.4% to S$776.8m (US $624m) while gambling revenue rose 14.8% to S$606.7m ($487.5m). Earnings rose 14.6% to S$347.4m while net profit rose 60.9% to S$222.7m.
Non-gaming revenue was up 27% to S$169.7m and the company says 18k visitors per day are enjoying its theme parks. However, Genting Singapore warned that the “continued weakening of regional currencies versus the Singapore dollar continues to make Singapore a more expensive destination for our regional customers.”
Even the locals can’t be counted on any more, according to the most recent annual report by Singapore’s Casino Regulatory Authority (CRA). Just 7.7% of Singaporeans and permanent residents have visited RWS and the city-state’s other gaming joint – Las Vegas Sands’ Marina Bay Sands (MBS) – more than once since the facilities opened for business in 2010. Total casino visits by locals have also fallen from 20k per day in 2010 to 17k, while the takings from annual and daily casino entry levies imposed on locals have fallen 20% and 8% respectively.
It doesn’t help that as of Oct. 1, Singapore civil servants have been required to declare all casino visits as well as whether they purchase an annual casino pass. The new restrictions came after an assistant director at the (irony alert) Corrupt Practices Investigation Bureau misappropriated over S$1.7m, some of which ended up on deposit in MBS’ accounts. The Public Service Division said all public officers were expected to act with integrity, including “not falling into financial embarrassment.”
There was no financial embarrassment at MBS in Q3, as earnings rose 43% to US $374m thanks to improved rolling chip volume and a 2.85% VIP gaming hold, up significantly from 1.79% in the same period last year. MBS has dealt with the declining locals’ market by focusing on driving foreign visitation, which rose 46% in Q3. On a recent earnings call, Sands’ president of global gaming operations Rob Goldstein said the company’s current premium mass casino win was between $4.2m and $4.5m per day, but the company is hoping to boost that to $5m per day, after which overall earnings “will accelerate quite a bit.” You don’t say…
