as Vegas Strip casino gambling revenue declined for the eighth straight month in August as cash-strapped US consumers curbed entertainment and travel spending because of an economic slowdown.
Wall Street analysts said August results were helped by an additional weekend day and a greater share of the Labor Day weekend compared with August 2007. "We expect the Strip could have a more difficult fourth quarter as (airline) flight capacity is reduced and consumer spending worsens," Morgan Stanley analyst Celeste Mellet Brown said in a research note.
Proceeds for Clark County, which includes downtown Las Vegas as well as the Strip, fell 9.4 % to us$ 759.3 million, according to the board’s statement. The slump prompted Boyd Gaming Corp. to delay construction of its us$ 4.75 billion Echelon resort development. Moody’s Investors Services Inc. in July initiated multiple reviews of gambling companies with business on the Strip.
Las Vegas Strip properties include casinos operated by MGM Mirage, Las Vegas Sands Corp, Wynn Resorts Ltd and Harrah’s Entertainment Inc. Other major gambling companies with casinos in Nevada include Boyd Gaming Corp and Station Casinos Inc.
Boyd fell 13 % to us$ 6.15 in New York Stock Exchange composite trading, Las Vegas Sands Corp. dropped 17 % to us$ 13.85, while MGM Mirage declined 8.4 % to us$ 16.26. Wynn Resorts Ltd. slid 6.6 % to us$ 56.24 on the Nasdaq Stock Market.
