Reef Casino released half year results last week. The result was in line with previous guidance at the AGM and while a recovery from last years poor first half was not an outstanding result in historical context: Corporate Coffee Gossip

Detailed breakdown commentary provides a some items of interest:

There is also subsequent commentary in this report that hotel room performance has been boosted by currently reduced inventory (GA Group ex Tradewinds). The weak performance of the EGM (pokie) sector contrasts with positive growth in recent years at hotel and club venues in Cairns. Growth since 2015 which was the previous peak at the casino compared to hotel and club venues in the Cairns Regional Council area and the immediate Cairns City SA2:

                                   Casino          Council LGA       City SA2
June Half 2016         -4.2%                 8.7%                  24.0%
June Half 2017         -6.5%                 1.9%                   -1.0%
June Half 2018         -1.1%                 6.9%                    7.2%

The casino numbers derive from commentary in their reports on (gross) revenue which I’m assuming is comparable to the OLG data for metred win by hotels and clubs. A point to note is that operating EGM numbers in the City SA2 have actually declined over this period but have bumped up again in recent months. There have been more than 100 hotel and club EGM’s added in the CRC area since 2015.

To place that now multi year decline in graphical representation:

Meanwhile down in Canberra our old friends at Aquis have turned in another loss at the only casino in Oz where EGM’s are excluded. Revenue was down 3.6% after now a full half comparable trading post a refurbishment despite impressive tourism numbers for the national capital. Progress on a proposed $350 million casino resort development which would include pokies has stalled in negotiations with the ACT Government. Now who would ever have thought that might happen.

All worth keeping in mind with proposals to include a casino in the planned global tourism hub. Reef Casino have expressed interest in that development and have also in this latest report  indicated that they remain in confidential discussions.

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