Posted on: September 29, 2022, 05:26h.
Last updated on: September 29, 2022, 06:02h.
Nevada casino revenue has topped $1 billion in each of the previous 18 months, an unprecedented streak that seemingly has no end in sight despite a host of economic headwinds.
The Nevada Gaming Control Board (NGCB) says August’s gross gaming revenue totaled more than $1.2 billion. August was 3.5% better than a year ago, and more impressive was that last month represented a 27% premium on August 2019.
“Nevada continued to record gaming win amounts in excess of pre-pandemic levels in August with $1.2 billion in win,” said Michael Lawton, senior economic analyst for the NGCB.
August was powered by another strong showing on the Las Vegas Strip. Clark County casinos won a little more than $1 billion, with the Strip accounting for $659.7 million of the gaming haul.
Statewide, slots won $847.1 million off of gamblers — up 2.5% year-over-year. The house also fared well on tables, revenue from felt coming in north of $361.3 million, 6% better than August 2021.
Oddsmakers kept $16.1 million of the sports bets wagered on a 4% hold rate. Handle, or the total amount risked, was $408.7 million.
August Rebound
There were some concerns following July’s NGCB report that showed gaming declined from 2021. Though the state’s casinos still won more than $1.3 billion, July 2022 was off more than 3% year-over-year.
Lawton says the alarms that were sounded last month — that record inflation might be beginning to slow the post-pandemic demand for Las Vegas and Nevada — were without merit.
I think people forget that July 2021 was an all-time record for any month, so it was not a surprise that this July might miss the mark,” Lawton said. “However, August came in about where I had anticipated, down 8.2% sequentially compared to July.
“Historically, August has averaged close to a 9% decrease compared to July, which I figured, if that held true, we would see an increase year-over-year more than August 2021,” Lawton detailed.
Nevada casinos, which set an all-time revenue record last year, with GGR totaling more than $13.4 billion, are on pace to set yet another new mark with just four reporting months to go in 2022.
Visitor Volume Strong
The Consumer Price Index, the federal government’s inflation benchmark, showed that prices for goods and services increased 8.3% year-over-year in August 2022. The Dow Jones Industrial Average contracted 4% — or almost 1,300 points.
Despite the economic unease, Las Vegas continued to see gamblers and visitors return to Southern Nevada in August 2022.
The Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority today said approximately 3.19 million people traveled to the casino hub last month — 6.4% better than August 2021, but still considerably below August 2019.
Las Vegas casinos are winning more money off of gamblers. Despite welcoming 3.19 million people last month — about 380,000 fewer people than came to Las Vegas in August 2019 — Clark County’s gaming income was 29% higher last month.
Air traffic to Southern Nevada also continues to rebound and inch closer to 2019 levels. Harry Reid International is fresh off its best three-month period, and passenger traffic through eight months in 2022 is within 2% of 2019.
