Macau gaming tax revenue hits $1.04 billion in August

Macau’s gaming tax revenue climbed to MOP8.31 billion ($1.04 billion) in August, up 2.5% from the previous month, reflecting strong gross gaming revenue (GGR) performance and adding to government coffers.

The figure, reported by the Financial Services Bureau, corresponds to July’s GGR of MOP22.1 billion ($2.73 billion), which rose 19% year-on-year and marked a new post-pandemic high.

For the first eight months of 2025, gaming tax revenue reached MOP61.9 billion ($7.71 billion), a 5.3% increase from a year earlier. Gaming duty accounted for 85.5% of the total government revenue of MOP72.4 billion ($9.02 billion). With a full-year budget of MOP93.1 billion ($11.6 billion), collections so far represent nearly 70% of the target.

Macau’s casino sector is sustaining momentum, with GGR for January to August hitting MOP163.1 billion ($20.3 billion). Analysts at Jefferies expect the trend to extend through September and into China’s “golden week” holiday in October.

According to Jefferies analysts Anne Ling and Jingjue Pei, GGR in the first week of September rose 10% year-on-year, supported by “rich entertainment events, new properties, more incentives to players and appreciating asset values,” as well as a “new wealth” segment of consumers with greater discretionary income.

Jefferies forecasts GGR growth of 13.8% in the third quarter, 15.3% in the fourth quarter, and 9.5% for 2025 overall. It has lifted its full-year projection from MOP237 billion ($29.5 billion) to MOP248 billion ($30.9 billion), ahead of the government’s estimate of MOP228 billion ($28.4 billion). The bank expects growth of 3.5% in 2026 and 3.4% in 2027.