Nevada has released its financial report for July, reporting a 3.2% fall in gaming revenue to $1.3bn year-on-year. Despite the annual drop, this is the 17th straight month of $1bn+ revenue for the Silver State – the fourth-best in the state’s history.
The Las Vegas Strip, the lynchpin to Nevada’s gaming success, fell by 2.42% to $773.4m with a drop off in baccarat play being a key factor in this decline. Baccarat revenue fell by 13.8% compared to the same period in the prior year. Excluding baccarat, the Strip actually saw a 0.53% revenue increase.
Slot machine performance in Las Vegas also showed underwhelming returns, declining year-on-year by 4.6%. However, it should be factored in that one Sunday of revenue was pushed forward into August’s financial results.
Downtown and North Las Vegas revenue amounted to $60m and $24.5m, year-on-year declines of 16% and 4% respectively. Financial results outside of Sin City further dragged the total down, with statewide revenue declining by 4.2%.
Washoe County revenue totaled $94.7m, down 5% from the prior-year period, while South Lake Tahoe reported revenue of $31.8m, a 1% year annual decline. Carson Valley Area revenue also declined 3% year-on-year to $11.7m.
However, despite the overall declining revenue, visitation numbers hit peak numbers since the outbreak of Covid-19, reaching 3.5 million – a 5.7% year-on-year increase. This figure is only 5.3% below pre-Covid-19 levels and room rates continued to be robust on the Strip and downtown, growing more than 25% from 2019 numbers, in both markets.
