Category Archives: China

Life after casinos; Sheldon is george

“The situation continues to evolve and will escalate rapidly and dramatically. These are unprecedented actions in an extraordinary situation, but they could be the difference in saving lives and keeping people safe.” So said Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan (R) on Sunday, … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Boyd Gaming, Caesars Entertainment, California, China, Cordish Co., e-sports, Economy, Entertainment, Foxwoods, Health, Horseracing, Internet gambling, Las Vegas Sands, Maryland, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, Mississippi, Mohegan Sun, Nevada, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Politics, Rush Street Gaming, Sheldon Adelson, Sports, Sports betting, The Strip, Tourism, Tribal, TV, Wisconsin | 1 Comment

Panic in The Street, Vegas calmer

A stock market “circuit breaker” was deployed for the first time since the crash of 2008, when Wall Street opened for trading and stocks promptly nosedived. All major casino stocks are trading down, especially Wynn Resorts, Eldorado Resorts and Station Casinos. … Continue reading

Posted in Caesars Entertainment, China, Conventions, Diversity, Eldorado Resorts, Health, IGT, International, Macau, MGM Resorts International, Oregon, Philippines, Sports betting, Station Casinos, The Strip, Tribal, Wall Street, William Hill, Wynn Resorts | Comments Off on Panic in The Street, Vegas calmer

Vegas vs. virus; Tribe puts $1 billion on table

Las Vegas is 20,000 attendees poorer now that Adobe Summit 2020 has pulled the plug on its convention. Although Sin City has been spared from coronavirus fears so far, withdrawals of this magnitude are at least as bad as a … Continue reading

Posted in Alabama, China, Churchill Downs, Conventions, Donald Trump, Election, Health, International, Lotteries, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, Real Estate, Taxes, The Strip, Tribal | Comments Off on Vegas vs. virus; Tribe puts $1 billion on table

Gaming exempt from Wall Street love; Harry-come-lately

Gaming stocks responded indifferently to yesterday’s Wall Street rally. Wynn Resorts was up and down but ultimately flat, MGM Resorts International ticked up 2%, Las Vegas Sands was flat and Melco Resorts & Entertainment slipped a percentage point. So much … Continue reading

Posted in Boyd Gaming, Caesars Entertainment, China, Churchill Downs, Conventions, Dining, Donald Trump, Economy, Eldorado Resorts, Election, Entertainment, Harry Reid, Health, Japan, Las Vegas Sands, Macau, Massachusetts, Melco Resorts & Entertainment, MGM Resorts International, Oregon, South Korea, Station Casinos, The Strip, Tourism, Tribal, Wall Street, Wynn Resorts | Comments Off on Gaming exempt from Wall Street love; Harry-come-lately

Bank rides to Churchill Downs’ rescue; Las Vegas healthy

Last week Churchill Downs posted perfectly good 4Q19 numbers but Wall Street wasn’t buying it. CHDN shares slumped 14%. That prompted some weekend damage control from JP Morgan, which bumped its rating up from “neutral” to “overweight,” and sent analyst … Continue reading

Posted in Caesars Entertainment, China, Conventions, Donald Trump, Economy, Eldorado Resorts, Health, history, Horseracing, Illinois, Indiana, International, Kentucky, Marketing, Problem gambling, Regulation, Rhode Island, Slot routes, Sports, Sports betting, The Strip, Tourism, Transportation, Tribal, Wall Street, Washington State, William Hill, Wynn Resorts | Comments Off on Bank rides to Churchill Downs’ rescue; Las Vegas healthy

Big January for the Strip; Mega-jottings

January was very good for the Las Vegas Strip, up 7.5% to $572 million. Baccarat played a big role, with winnings up 16% on 24% greater wagering. (In fairness, January 2019 was terrible for baccarat.) Other table games didn’t do … Continue reading

Posted in Australia, Boulder Strip, Caesars Entertainment, China, Conventions, Downtown, Downtown Grand, Eldorado Resorts, Health, Illinois, International, Internet gambling, Lake Tahoe, Laughlin, Marketing, MGM Resorts International, Mississippi, North Las Vegas, Philippines, PokerStars, Regulation, Reno, Technology, The Strip, Tourism, Transportation, Wendover | 2 Comments

Quote of the Day

“This had been seen as mainly a China problem. Now, there is more concern about how difficult this virus will be to contain.”—Rockland Trust Director of Research Doug Butler, after coronavirus fears drove the Dow Jones down 1,030 points.

Posted in China, Health, Wall Street | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

More Stitt double talk; Tribes try again for Maine casinos

Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) continues to bake over $130 million/year in tribal-casino exclusivity fees into his next two budgets, despite A) contending that the state’s Native American casinos are operating illegally and B) raiding those exclusivity fees to pay … Continue reading

Posted in Cambodia, China, Churchill Downs, Economy, Internet gambling, Maine, Oklahoma, Penn National, Racinos, Regulation, Taxes, Tribal | Comments Off on More Stitt double talk; Tribes try again for Maine casinos

“Empty gesture” in Macao; Big deals for Scientific, Hill

Casinos may have reopened in Macao but coronavirus cannot be so easily wished away. Fears of its spread hit U.S. stock markets hard, with the Dow Jones tumbling 840 points, ceding all 2020 gains. Overseas bourses are taking it hard, too, … Continue reading

Posted in Alabama, Arizona, Atlantic City, China, Culinary Union, Economy, Election, Galaxy Entertainment, Genting, Health, International, Internet gambling, Las Vegas Sands, Macau, Melco Resorts & Entertainment, MGM Resorts International, Michigan, Mississippi, Nevada, New Jersey, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Scientific Games, Singapore, Sociedade de Jogos de Macau, Sports, Sports betting, Taxes, Tilman Fertitta, Tourism, Tribal, Wall Street, William Hill, Wynn Resorts | Comments Off on “Empty gesture” in Macao; Big deals for Scientific, Hill

Saturation hits Connecticut; Culinary waffles on Sanders

So much for Tribal Winds, the satellite casino that was going to counteract MGM Springfield. Its backers are cutting the proposed $300 million investment by one-third. On the plus side, this could be read as a way of saying the … Continue reading

Posted in China, Colorado, Connecticut, Culinary Union, Donald Trump, DraftKings, Economy, Election, Environment, Foxwoods, Harry Reid, Health, history, Macau, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, Mohegan Sun, Pennsylvania, Politics, Sheldon Adelson, Sports, Sports betting, Steve Wynn, Technology | Comments Off on Saturation hits Connecticut; Culinary waffles on Sanders

Quote of the Day

“Countries with a powerful death penalty, with a fair but quick trial, they have very little if any drug problem. That includes China.”—Donald Trump, on the war on drugs.

Posted in China, Donald Trump, Law enforcement | Comments Off on Quote of the Day

Odds favor Bloomberg; Hilton returns to Vegas

As Saturday’s Nevada caucus nears, South Point oddsmaker Jimmy Vaccaro is boldly going where none of his colleagues have gone before, posting presidential odds. We’ll break them down by category. Vaccaro has Sen. Bernie Sanders (I), as expected, winning Nevada … Continue reading

Posted in Baseball, China, Connecticut, Cretins, Culinary Union, Election, International, Internet gambling, Kentucky, Las Vegas Sands, Law enforcement, Macau, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mattress Mack, MGM Resorts International, Nevada, New Hampshire, Politics, Resorts World LV, Sahara, Scientific Games, Sports betting, Taxes, Technology, The Strip | 1 Comment

Culinary defeats itself; Red scare in a blue state

By failing to coalesce behind a rival candidate, the Culinary Union may have gift-wrapped Nevada for Sen. Bernie Sanders [I]. According to the Boston Globe, which noted lingering tensions between Sanders and the Culinary, a recent poll “found Sanders the … Continue reading

Posted in China, Culinary Union, Election, Harry Reid, Marijuana, MGM Resorts International, Nevada, Politics, Sheldon Adelson, Technology, Wall Street | Comments Off on Culinary defeats itself; Red scare in a blue state

Election special

Such is the Culinary Union‘s clout that Nevada Sen. Jacky Rosen (D, left), Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto (D) and Rep. Susie Lee (D) will also be casting their caucus ballots at Culinary-sponsored events, staggered across today through Tuesday. On Wednesday, … Continue reading

Posted in China, Culinary Union, Election, Health, history, International, Internet gambling, Japan, Macau, Massachusetts, Maverick Gaming, MGM Resorts International, Nevada, Palms, Politics, Regulation, Sports betting, Steve Wynn, Technology, The Strip, Washington State, Wynn Resorts | 1 Comment

Atlantic City looking good; Murren calls it quits

An extra weekend day helped nudge Atlantic City casinos up 8% last month, for a $192 million gross. Tables were relatively sluggish (+1%) but slots were hot (+11%). Borgata gained 8.5% on the strength of 4.5% more table win—despite 3% … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Caesars Entertainment, China, CityCenter, Conventions, Detroit, Eldorado Resorts, Hard Rock International, Health, Internet gambling, Japan, Maryland, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, Mississippi, Mohegan Sun, Morris Bailey, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Ocean Resort, Ohio, Sports, Sports betting, Technology, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Wall Street | 3 Comments

The new China syndrome

Junket operators and gaming companies in Macao are donating $22.5 million to help find a coronavirus cure. Good on them. Would that we could say half that about the government of China, which has bungled a localized virus into a … Continue reading

Posted in Caesars Entertainment, China, CityCenter, Election, Entertainment, Health, Japan, Las Vegas Sands, Louisiana, Macau, Nevada, Oklahoma, Penn National, Rush Street Gaming, South Korea, Sports, Sports betting, The Strip, Tribal, Wynn Resorts | Comments Off on The new China syndrome

Weak quarter at Wynn, worse to come

Wynn Resorts remains our top story today. It missed fourth-quarter cash-flow projections by 4%, partly due to mediocre high-end play in Macao, although the mass-market trade was better (up 4% but lagging the Macanese industry’s 8% gain). Wynn Palace underperformed … Continue reading

Posted in China, DraftKings, Health, Law enforcement, Macau, Massachusetts, MGM Resorts International, South Korea, Sports, Sports betting, The Strip, TV, Wall Street, Wynn Resorts | Comments Off on Weak quarter at Wynn, worse to come

MGM, Cordish boom in Maryland; Here come the robots

Turns out the Maryland market hasn’t quite been saturated, after all. January saw 6% growth in gambling revenue, led by MGM National Harbor‘s $58.5 million (+4%). Slots at MGM were up 10% but table win down 2%. MGM had 40% … Continue reading

Posted in Caesars Entertainment, China, Churchill Downs, Cordish Co., Entertainment, Golden Gaming, Japan, Maryland, MGM Resorts International, Movies, Ohio, Penn National, Planet Hollywood, Technology, The Strip, West Virginia | Comments Off on MGM, Cordish boom in Maryland; Here come the robots

Macao closed for business; Tribal troubles

In what once seemed unthinkable, Macao has been ordered to close all 41 of its casinos (and presumably its myriad slot parlors) to inhibit the spread of coronavirus. The inciting incident appears to have been a case of the virus … Continue reading

Posted in Charity, China, Donald Trump, Economy, Election, Galaxy Entertainment, Genting, Health, Macau, Massachusetts, Money laundering, Neil Bluhm, North Dakota, Oregon, Politics, Sociedade de Jogos de Macau, Tourism, Transportation, Tribal, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Macao: Worse than expected; New deal on Connecticut table

When China gets coronavirus, Macao develops pneumonia. While Wall Street was expecting gaming revenues to dip 2% in January, they fell 11%. Macanese casinos still grossed $2.75 billion, so it’s not like they were hearing crickets. However, February is shaping … Continue reading

Posted in Atlantic City, Caesars Entertainment, China, Connecticut, Derek Stevens, Downtown, Economy, Eldorado Resorts, Foxwoods, Health, IGT, Illinois, Japan, Las Vegas Sands, Louisiana, Macau, MGM Resorts International, Mohegan Sun, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Politics, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Sports betting, Tourism, West Virginia | Comments Off on Macao: Worse than expected; New deal on Connecticut table