Gaming stocks continued their downward trend today, extending their monthly decline. As of press time, SANDS CHINA LTD (01928) dropped 5.41% to HK$19.05; MELCO INT'L DEV (00200) fell 4.05% to HK$4.98; WYNN MACAU (01128) declined 3.65% to HK$6.34; and MGM CHINA (02282) decreased 3.16% to HK$14.4.

On the news front, JPMorgan previously released a research report stating that Macau's total gaming revenue (GGR) for the first five days of October reached MOP 5.5 billion, with daily average revenue of approximately MOP 1.1 billion, representing the best Golden Week performance in nearly five years. However, compared to last year's very high base, the year-on-year growth was only 3%, falling short of the bank's and market expectations. Visitor arrivals from October 1-5 remained flat, further dragging down GGR growth, as a typhoon caused visitor numbers to drop 25% on October 5. Nevertheless, the bank is not concerned about the currently seemingly weak growth momentum, projecting October GGR to grow 11-13% year-on-year to MOP 23 billion, reaching a six-year high.

UBS indicated that WYNN MACAU's gaming revenue market share rose significantly in September, increasing approximately 200 basis points month-on-month, driving its third-quarter market share up 150 basis points quarter-on-quarter. The company with the second-highest market share gain was SJM Holdings, with September market share increasing about 50 basis points month-on-month, though it still declined 30 basis points in the third quarter. The bank noted that relative to market expectations, GALAXY ENT and Wynn's market shares exceeded expectations, while MGM CHINA, SANDS CHINA LTD, and SJM Holdings fell below expectations.