THE shooting incident at Resorts World Manila (RWM) last June continued to drag on Travellers International Hotel Group, Inc. (TIHGI)’s bottom line, as the company booked a net loss for the third quarter of 2017.
In a regulatory filing, the owner and operator of RWM said it delivered a net loss attributable to the parent of P408 million, coming from an attributable profit of P1.18 billion in the July to September period of 2017.
On a nine-month basis, net loss attributable to the parent was recorded at P34.13 million, against earnings of P2.98 billion in the same period a year ago.
The casino area of Resorts World Manila was closed for 27 days in June this year due to a shooting incident that left 38 people, including the gunman, dead. The second floor of the casino, where the gaming tables are, has yet to be restored, pulling gross gaming revenues down to P12.8 billion, 28% lower compared to the P18.02 billion posted in the same period a year ago.
Despite the losses recorded, the company noted it has started to see visitors coming back to the integrated resort and casino estate.
The Andrew L. Tan-led firm noted average occupancy of hotels inside the estate was at 78% for the nine-month period. Foot traffic meanwhile averaged 23,000 daily in the third quarter, and 25,000 for the January to September period.
Meanwhile, the non-gaming segment booked P2.9 billion in revenues, a 5.1% year-on-year increase.
Gross revenues for the nine months ending September meanwhile stood at P15.7 billion, albeit 24% lower than the P20.8 billion reported in the same period a year ago.
“We are happy to see guests returning to the property and are excited to introduce Phase 3 of (RWM) very soon. This development will be fully operational by the end of 2018 and will realize our vision to be among the premier world-class integrated entertainment and tourism destinations in Asia,” TIHGI President and Chief Executive Officer Kingson U. Sian said in a statement.
Shares in TIHGI dropped four centavos or 1.04% to P3.81 at the stock exchange on Friday. — ABF
