Macao casino bonds slump during anti-graft drive
Macao casino bonds are plunging as President Xi Jinping's corruption crackdown against "flies and tigers" spooks VIP gamblers.
The yield on Wynn Macao's notes due October 2021 jumped 93 basis points this month and touched a record 5.80 percent on Monday, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The yield on Melco Crown Entertainment debt due 2021 reached an all-time high of 5.61 percent. The six biggest Hong Kong-listed Macao casino stocks have fallen by 32 percent on average this year.
Gross gaming revenue in Macao, the only place in China where casinos are legal, may fall this year amid Xi's anti-graft campaign. Tour operators are offering private jets to fly China's high-spending gamblers, or VIPs, to Melbourne and Las Vegas so that they can avoid the increased scrutiny in Macao.
