Nevada Gaming Revenue Up 18.4% To $1.038 Billion In January 2012

admin, March 9, 2012 2:41 pm

The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) has just released its gaming figures for January, revealing an 18.4% rise in revenue to $1.038 billion, compared to $877.3 million taken in the same month last year.
The impressive amount represented Nevadas first billion dollar month for several years, with Chad Beynon from Macquarie Securities commenting:
“The headline number was particularly strong, with (the) total gaming revenue marking the highest level since October 2007.”
However, gaming analyst have warned that January’s result should be taken with a grain of salt as the huge gain was mostly accounted for by the Chinese New Year celebration. As NGCB senior analyst Michael Lawton explains:
“Obviously the big percentage difference has to do with the fact the Chinese New Year was in January. Last year it was in February.”
Nonetheless, cautions aside, the boost to Nevada’s gaming revenue was widely welcomed as a positive sign, with the Las Vegas Strip seeing their numbers rise by 29% to $623.5 million from $482.7 million in January 2011. This marked The Strip’s fourth biggest revenue month ever while revenue from table games, such as baccarat, blackjack, craps, and roulette, was the biggest in Nevada’s history at $365.2 million.
Elsewhere, Downtown Las Vegas saw its casino gaming revenues increase by 14%; South Lake Tahoe’s increase by 2% to $17 million, while Washoe County’s fell by 8.6% to $38 million.
In addition, the State collected $57.4 million in taxes based on January’s result, with another $19 million expected to be collected for the month after high-end wagers on credit are finally settled.
Going forward, analysts are waiting to see February’s gambling revenue figures before allowing too much optimism, with Union Gaming Group principal Bill Lerner, adding:
“While (the) numbers are very encouraging, we continue to remain somewhat apprehensive about the overall recovery in the Las Vegas locals market due to lackluster job and wage growth, coupled with declining housing metrics.”