Naga Corp's GGR rose 20 pct from January to September

Cambodian casino operator Nagakov said the Nagarwold casino complex in Cambodia's capital Phnom Penh (pictured) was provisionally tallied for nearly $1.29 billion in gaming gross sales (GGR) in the first nine months of 2019. That was up 20.2% year over year, the Hong Kong-listed company said on Wednesday.

Nagakov added that for the nine months ended Sept. 30, game net sales rose 28.5% year-over-year to $616.3 million.

The company has an exclusive license to operate casinos in Phnom Penh and the surrounding area. It has started operations with the nagaworld property, now known as naga 1, which opened in December 2006. The property is currently connected to naga 2, which opened in November 2017. The entire complex is now known as the nagaworld complex.

"Financial results for the nine months ended September 30, 2019, show the group continues its journey of growth," Nagakov said in a Wednesday filing. The filing included voluntary announcements on the company's unaudited operating highlights from January to September.

The company said claims for its electronic game consoles rose 37.9% to $1.22 billion over the period, while claims for electronic game consoles rose 27.9% to $2.05 billion.

In the VIP table gaming segment, rolling chip sales rose 35.3% to nearly $33.87 billion.

"The increase in VIP business volume was driven by continued business visits to the Naga World complex, especially the Naga 2 complex, and increased tourists and footprints," the company said. "In particular, Naga 2 had customer demand to increase table restrictions."

Naga Corp in July reported net income of about $245.1 million for the first six months of the year, up 36.1% year-over-year.

The company identified Cambodia's political stability, improved operating environment, growth of Naga2's business, and expansion of its tourism and VIP gaming business among reasons for its performance in the first nine months of 2019.

Nagakov said increased tourism to Cambodia contributed to business growth, including a 37% increase in arrivals from mainland China in the first seven months of this year.

China offers most of the kingdom's tourist arrivals and mainland gamblers are widely considered the most profitable customers in the Asia-Pacific region. Nagakov said more than 1.5 million people had arrived from the mainland by the end of July.

The average hotel occupancy rate in Naga 2 reached about 85% in the nine months to September 30, according to a statement to the Hong Kong Exchange.

BY: 슬롯머신