Nevada Casino Revenues Rise 6.8% to $887M in June

The latest gambling results released by the Nevada Gaming Control Board shows that the state’s casinos generated revenues of $887.4 million in June, representing a 6.8% improvement versus the same month in 2015. As a result, the Silver State closed the 2016 fiscal year with total revenues up by 0.64% at $11.1 billion, albeit with that figure still significantly below the peak revenues collected in 2007 of $12.5 billion.
As usual, the Las Vegas Strip accounted for the lion’s share of business with revenues up an impressive 9.7% to $489 million. The positive growth was also replicated elsewhere across Nevada, with Laughlin up 9.57%, Elko County up 2.32%, and Downtown Las Vegas up 0.56%, although North Las Vegas and the Boulder Strip both reported negative growth.
Last month, slot revenues were up 7% to $594.7m; while on the table game front blackjack revenues increased 2.5% to $83.4m, baccarat was up 32% to $77m, craps was up 26.4% to $32.1m, and roulette was up 0.5% to $25.6m. In addition, poker contributed a further $16.1m to revenues, buoyed by the 2016 WSOP, although that figure was still 1.9% down versus the same month last year.
In comparison to Nevada’s increase of 6.8% in June, the world’s biggest gambling hub, Macau, reported an 8.5% fall in business during the same month. Furthermore, Nevada’s revenues improved to around 44% of Macau’s $1.99 billion market in June, marking a huge improvement over 2013 when Nevada was just 15% of Macau’s total.
Macau’s gambling market has now declined for 26 straight months, with June’s total the lowest revenues collected since September 2010. Much of the decline can be explained by the slowing Chinese economy, an ongoing anti-corruption campaign launched by the Chinese government, as well as an industry shift towards offering more family oriented entertainment. Macau is aiming to transform the island resort into a “world tourism and leisure center”, and is currently seeking to boost its casino non-gambling revenues from their current level of just 10%. By comparison, that figure rises to almost two-thirds for Nevada.