Macau Gaming Revenue Falls 10% in October, Fifth Straight Decline

Macau's Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau reported on Sunday that the territory's six casino concessionaires generated gross gaming revenue of MOP21.68 billion, or roughly US$2.68 billion, in October 2026, Casino.org reported.

That figure was down 10%, or about $298 million, from October 2025, marking the fifth consecutive month of year-on-year decline for the world's largest gambling market by revenue.

Despite the recent slump, cumulative GGR for the first ten months of 2026 remains up 1.6% on the same period last year. Sands, Galaxy, Wynn, MGM, Melco and SJM have collectively won more than $25.87 billion from gamblers so far this year.

Twenty casinos operate across the territory between the six concessionaires. SJM and Sands each hold five venues, while Galaxy and Melco run three apiece and Wynn and MGM each have two. Across all of them sit a combined 6,000 table games and 12,000 slot machines, according to regulatory data.

October's result was weighed down by a difficult comparison with the previous year's Golden Week period. The Oct. 1-7 holiday, marking the founding of the People's Republic of China, typically draws mainland visitors to Macau, and October 2025 produced GGR of $2.98 billion, the highest monthly total of that year.

Analysts had generally forecast a 7% year-on-year decline for October 2026. The actual 10% drop points to softer premium mass and VIP play, which Casino.org said reflects continuing economic headwinds in mainland China.

For a second straight year, Sands put on two pre-season basketball fixtures between the Houston Rockets and Dallas Mavericks at its Venetian Arena venue on the Cotai Strip, part of an effort to pull in mass-market visitors. Dr. Miriam Adelson, who controls Sands, and her son-in-law Patrick Dumont, the company's chairman and chief executive, also have ties to the Mavericks ownership.

Casino.org noted that weaker Chinese consumer sentiment is weighing on the gaming sector more broadly. Chinese retail sales fell in May 2026 for the first time in more than three years, with spending constrained by rising energy costs tied to the war in Iran and ongoing US tariff threats.

Seaport Research Partners analyst Vitaly Umansky does not expect a November rebound, projecting GGR to fall 6.1% year-on-year to around $2.45 billion. He pointed to weaker Chinese macroeconomic conditions, a falling stock market, and stricter tax enforcement on offshore trusts held by high-net-worth individuals as factors likely to keep some VIP play away.

Umansky attributed the five-month slowdown to what he called a K-shaped economy combined with tax-related concerns among wealthy players. He said he remains bullish on Macau over the long term, arguing that valuations for the publicly traded casino operators are "fairly low" and could offer upside for investors willing to hold exposure to China for the long haul.