Asia New report forecasts the increasing influence of region in gambling
Posted by Lenny S on 12/7/10 – The independent and respected international business services provider, PricewaterhouseCoopers, predicts that the Asian Pacific region will have a profound impact on the global gambling industry by 2014.
Although the firm excludes online gambling from its study (on the basis that uncertainty about legal issues in the United States makes it difficult to predict), it is in no doubt that Asia's and Australia's fast-growing gambling industries will account for nearly as much of the world market as the United States.
PricewaterhouseCoopers predicts the market that includes Macau in China, as well as Singapore, South Korea and Australia will generate $62.9 billion just three years from now. Revenue for companies in those markets was $21.8 billion in 2009.
In the United States, 2009 gambling revenue was $57.2 billion, including all commercial and American Indian casinos. PricewaterhouseCoopers expects that to edge up to $68.3 billion.
American Indian casinos had $26.5 billion in revenue in 2009, and the report projects that will grow 2.7 percent per year to $30.3 billion by 2014.
Commercial gambling in the U.S. will grow to $38 billion in 2014 from $30.7 billion last year, PWC forecasts.
That includes regional casinos outside Nevada and New Jersey growing 6.1 percent per year and gambling revenue in Atlantic City dropping 3.2 percent per year. Gambling in Nevada is expected to grow 4.1 percent per year and generate $12.5 billion in 2014.
Macau is already the world's top single gambling market, and the PWC report anticipates that gambling revenue will grow nearly 25 percent each of the next five years, to $45.1 billion in 2014.
That number would beat commercial gambling in the United States. The report points out that two of the world's top four gambling companies — Las Vegas Sands and Wynn Resorts — already make most of their profit in Macau, and their gambling revenue in the enclave dwarfs their U.S. gambling revenue.
