The year-on-year decrease in casino gaming revenue recorded in the first quarter of 2016 was within the Government’s expectation, said the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Mr Leong Vai Tac.

Mr Leong made the comments on Tuesday (5 April) after attending the swearing-in ceremony of the new Director and the new Deputy Director of the Macao Economic Services.

Official data showed gaming revenue in March amounted to approximately 18 billion patacas, showing a 16.3 percent reduction compared to the same period in 2015. Casino gaming revenue in the first quarter recorded a 13.3 percent year-on-year decline, to approximately 56 billion patacas.

The fall in revenue for March and for the quarter was in line with the Government’s forecast for 2016 gaming revenue, made when the Government was preparing the budget proposal for this fiscal year, Mr Leong said. The 2016 estimate took as its starting point the casino revenue recorded in 2015.

Mr Leong said the issues impacting Macao’s gaming industry were related with the performance of economies in other places and other external factors beyond the control of the Macao SAR. He noted that external conditions had not significantly altered. Local casinos would benefit if there were positive changes in the performance of neighbouring economies, he added.

Amid the ongoing adjustment period for the local gaming industry, the Government would step up efforts to promote high quality services and to boost development of non-gaming offerings in casinos. These efforts would help further diversify the sources of Macao’s visitors. Such visitors might include a greater number of middle class families from international markets, Mr Leong said.

When asked by reporters about the effectiveness of the “Macau Loves Locals” campaign, the Secretary said he believed such a campaign need not be thought of as a way to increase gaming revenue: rather, it was a campaign to allow local residents to enjoy non-gaming offerings at hotels and resorts operated by the city’s six casino operators.

Mr Leong additionally said he had directed the team of people involved in translation work related to the mid-term review of the city’s gaming industry, to speed their efforts.

The mid-term review is examining the achievements of the city’s six gaming operators since the liberalisation of the gaming industry in 2002. The concessions and sub-concessions will expire on dates between 2020 and 2022.