Economy Hurts Las Vegas Casinos, February Revenue Down

Nevada casinos had a lot of things going in their favor in February. Different events, plus an extra day, were expected to lead to higher profits.

That was not the case, however. The profits from casinos in Nevada fell in February from the same month last year. The revenue decrease came despite the stars seemingly aligning for a revenue hike.

The Superbowl was in February, meaning that any events and parties Las Vegas had planned would help increase revenue. The month had a three day President's Day weekend. The Monte Carlo reopened after a fire shut them down for a while. Yet revenues dropped from last February.

$1.01 billion was won by the casinos. That number was down four percent from February of 2007. This year, there was even an extra day due to it being a Leap Year. That had little effect on the outcome of the month.

What did have an effect, and will continue to have an effect, is the economy. People simply do not have the money to travel on vacations to Sin City. Money that used to be used for entertainment purposes, is now having to be used to pay bills.

"We were disappointed but we can't say it was unexpected. It's definitely a reflection of the soft economy and people tightening up their spending habits," said Frank Streshley, Gaming Control Board Analysts, while releasing the new figures.

April 9, 2008
Posted By Larry Rutherford
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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