How do evolving casino casino regulations in Japan look? Well, how does ‘not as bad as expected’ sound? Trust me, that’s good news. And don’t take my word: Take that of Morgan Stanley. Taxes will be set at 30%, 
which Morgan Stanley thinks will support at least 14% return on investment, if not better. There would be an entry fee for Japanese nationals, comparable to $56. The bank also projects $10 billion in annual gaming revenue just from megaresorts in Tokyo and Osaka. (A third resort is expected.) Tokyo might actually be last to market, due to disruption from the 2020 Olympics, “While Osaka seems to have all its stars aligned, there is no certainty around other locations,” opined Big Stan, mooting four other “interested locations,” including Nagasaki, which most of us think of in distinctly non-gaming contexts. The report did make the caveat that hitting those rosy ROI numbers (as high as 20%) was predicated on megaresort costs at $10 billion or less. Lawrence “Whatever it Takes” Ho, take heed.
* Louisiana casino revenues grew a healthy 7.5% in March. “Lake Charles, led by Golden Nugget, outperformed for the fifth consecutive month, up 16.3% y/y while Baton Rouge was again the softest market, falling 8.4% 
y/y. New Orleans grew 10.8% y/y in March while Shreveport – Bossier City was up 1.5% y/y,” reported Deutsche Bank analyst Carlo Santarelli. Overall, Caesars Entertainment (up 9%) fared best, Gaming & Leisure Properties (-14.5%) the worst. As mentioned, Golden Nugget grossed $31 million, for a 25% gain, but L’Auberge du Lac held the top spot with $32.5 million in revenue and a 21.5% gain. Isle Grand Palais grossed $11 million, down 5%, while Delta Downs posted $19 million for a 9.5% gain.
At $93 million overall, Lake Charles far outpaced New Orleans ($57 million). Harrah’s New Orleans gained 24% to $27 million, while Fair Grounds racino inched up 4% to $4.5 million. Boyd Gaming‘s Treasure Chest was flat at $10 million while its Amelia Belle was up 7% to $4 million. Boomtown New Orleans declined 1.5% to $11 million. L’Auberge Baton Rouge slipped 6% to $16 million in that snake-bitten market. Penn National Gaming‘s riverboat plummeted 
14.5% to $6 million while newly-in-play Casino Rouge declined 8.5% to $5 million. We’ll have to see if Eldorado Resorts has any magic bullets for that property.
As for the Shreveport/Bossier City market, Margaritaville is close on the heels of Horseshoe Bossier City. The latter led the market with $17 million (down 6%), but Margaritaville shot up 24% to finish at $16.5 million. Next closest was Eldorado Shreveport with $12 million (-4%). Everyone else was either flat (Sam’s Town, $7.5 million) or in decline … more ammunition for Diamond Jacks, as it seeks to weigh anchor and move to another, less-crowded parish.
* Sheldon Adelson isn’t leaving the Republican Party but the GOP is starting to leave him, at least when it comes to legal marijuana. From 
former Speaker of the House John Boehner to Rep. Dana Rohrbacher (R) and Sen. Cory Gardner (R), Republican influencers are standing up for legal loco weed. If endangered Nevada Sen. Dean Heller (R) wants to win his tight reelection race, he might want to make a play for the stoner vote. As for Adelson, remember that he bankrolled the campaign against an initiative in Florida that would have legalized medicinal marijuana. Anyone who goes out of his way to deny medicine to people in need is a cruel, petty man.
* As Wynn Boston Harbor remains mired in controversy, Plainridge Park is making hay while the sun shines. It grossed $16 million last month, up 11.5% on 6% higher coin-in. Slot revenues were $408/slot/day, double the industry average. Obviously Massachusetts residents are starved for a good gamble.
* Last month’s casino grosses set a record for Detroit, despite a revenue-negative performance by Greektown. Setting best-evers were MGM Grand Detroit ($58 million, beating a March 2012 $57 million) and MotorCity, whose $49 million comfortably beat a 2013 $46 million. With Caesars Windsor hors de combat, April can only look better still.
* Blocked from the Philippines island of Boracay by strongman Rodrigo Duterte and with $500 million mad money to spend, Galaxy Entertainment is broadening its perspective. It’s not given up on the 
Filipino market and is looking for other sites within the archipelago. “They just have to go through the process of accreditation and securing again a new Pagcor provisional authority. The whole process will be repeated,” said the Department of Tourism‘s Frederick Alegre. It’s not as easy as he makes it sound: Pagcor announced, “The provisional licence is only the start of a very long and tedious process of compliance that every integrated-resort operator must go through before they can be issued by Pagcor a ‘Notice to Commence Casino Operations’ and eventually, a regular casino gaming licence.” Let’s hope patience is in plentiful supply at Galaxy.
