The gaming industry in the Philippines reportedly recorded aggregated first-quarter gross gaming revenues of just over $1.1 billion with the majority of this at around $756 million having come from the three Las Vegas-style casinos located in the Entertainment City district of Manila.
Dominant distinction:
According to a report citing official information from the Philippine Gaming and Amusement Corporation (PAGCor) regulator, the Asian nation’s casinos racked up aggregated gross gaming revenues of about $996.6 million for the three months to the end of March with the giant venues in the 1,976-acre Entertainment City zone responsible for some 75.8% of this amount.
Regulator’s revenues:
The data also reportedly showed that PAGCor’s own six-strong chain of Casino Filipino-branded casinos as well as its estate of 33 satellite gambling venues generated aggregated first-quarter gross gaming revenues of approximately $179 million while its collection of nearly 20,000 slots had been responsible for bringing in a further $143.1 million.
Mass-market mastery:
GGRAsia reported that the information from PAGCor moreover indicated that the country’s private-sector casinos had chalked up combined mass-market table gaming revenues for the 90-day period of around $314.3 million while VIP play had accounted for an additional $267 million to be complemented by a further $236.5 million from slots.
Expanding estate:
The Entertainment City district welcomed its first Western-style integrated casino resort in 2013 following the debut of the Solaire Resort and Casino from the Bloomberry Resorts and Hotels Incorporated subsidiary of Manila-listed Bloomberry Resorts Corporation. This was soon followed by local firm Belle Corporation in partnership with Melco Resorts and Entertainment Limited opening their City of Dreams Manila development while December of 2016 saw the Tiger Resort, Leisure and Entertainment Incorporated subordinate of Japanese firm, Universal Entertainment Corporation, begin welcoming guests to its giant Okada Manila venue. This reclaimed area of land sits only about a 15-minute drive from Manila Ninoy Aquino International Airport and is furthermore set to host the Resorts World Westside City property from Megaworld Corporation?within the next decade.
Rising rank:
GGRAsia had earlier cited a report from financial services firm Morgan Stanley Asia Limited as claiming that the casino market in the Philippines is now ‘growing faster’ than the analogous sectors of Macau, Las Vegas and Singapore while it subsequently detailed that PAGCor recently reported a 9.5% increase year-on-year in its own first-quarter net income to $29.4 million.