Nevada Casino Revenues Falls 1% To $923m In July
September 1, 2015 11:17 amThe Nevada Gaming Control Board has released its latest revenue report showing that the state’s casinos generated $923 million in July, representing a 1% drop from the same month in 2014. A total of $57 million was then collected in gambling taxes, an improvement of 7% compared with July last year.
Dragging the numbers lower was baccarat revenues, which were down 23% to $104 million in July, while the amount of baccarat wagering also shrunk by 35% y-o-y, as high roller visitors from Asia stayed away due to the corruption clampdown campaign in China, as well as the weakening economic outlook of the country. Baccarat numbers have fallen in 10 out of the last 12 months now, and as CBRE gaming analyst Brent Pirosch explains:
“The most significant market declines are being borne by the handful of luxury properties that compete in the baccarat segment. The mass market — where the majority of casinos make their money — remains positive.”
One of the best indicators of a state’s casino industry is its slot machine business, and at its 2007 peak Nevada’s slot machines brought in $8.4 billion in revenues, before the economy tanked. In July 2015, Nevada then generated $600 million in slots revenues, higher by 5.5% from July 2014. This year, slot revenue are currently up by 3.7%, and as Gaming Control Board senior research analyst, Michael Lawton, explains:
“Slot win and volume is lessening the impact of what we’re seeing in baccarat.”
Breaking the figures down by market, the Las Vegas Strip saw its gambling revenue drop by 2% to $525 million, South Lake Tahoe was down 7% to $23 million, North Las Vegas was down 9.4%, and worst of all was Boulder strip down 11%. Meanwhile,Reno casinos collected $51 million in July, a 6% improvement from last year, and Downtown was also up by 6.5%.