Gaming tax revenue slightly rises in first half

The city’s gaming revenue for the first half of 2025 reached MOP45.40 billion, marking a slight increase of 0.9% compared to MOP44.99 billion during the same period last year, according to data released by the Financial Services Bureau.

Despite the modest rise in gaming tax income, overall recurrent revenue slightly declined by 0.95% year-on-year to MOP52.34 billion.

Last week, the government revised its 2025 forecast for gaming tax revenue, lowering it by 5% due to global economic conditions and changing tourist spending patterns.

The adjustment follows a similar 5% cut made in June to the city’s overall gross gaming revenue (GGR) forecast, which was reduced from MOP240 billion to MOP228 billion.

Meanwhile, when combined with capital revenue, total government income for the first six months stood at MOP52.75 billion, down 0.82% from MOP53.18 billion recorded the previous year.

On the expenditure side, recurrent spending fell significantly by 12% to MOP31.594 billion, compared to MOP35.90 billion in the first half of 2024. Capital expenditure increased by 6.5% to MOP9.76 billion from MOP9.17 billion a year earlier. Overall government expenditure for the period decreased by 8.23% to MOP41.36 billion.

The government’s fiscal surplus rose sharply by 40.3%, reaching MOP11.389 billion in the first half of 2025, up from MOP8.12 billion in the same period last year. lv