Radio New Zealand - Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa

Higher casino profit tipped

Updated at 6:48 pm on 11 November 2011

Casino revenues were up 9% to $26.5 million in the four months to the end of October.

Sky City Entertainment is picking to lift its annual profit by at least 7%.

At the annual meeting of the casino operator in Auckland on Friday, Sky City chief executive Nigel Morrison said he expects a full year profit in the $140 millions, compared with last year's profit of $130.9 million.

Mr Morrison told shareholders that the outlook for New Zealand remained uncertain, while he's optimistic about trading in its two Australian casinos in Adelaide and Darwin.

He said the financial year had started well, with normalised revenues up 9% to $26.5 million in the four months to the end of October, compared with the same period a year ago.

The result was partly driven by the Rugby World Cup finals, but Mr Morrison said it's mainly due to a recent $50 million refurbishment of its flagship casino in Auckland and attracting more gamblers from Asia.

Mr Morrison told Evening Business on Checkpoint said the $12 million in revenues from the Rugby World Cup was less than expected.

"We certainly did see an uplift from the quarter finals through to the finals ... really those last two full weeks were when we got the uplift, not over the balance over the tournament."

However, he says it has given the company some momentum in the first quarter of the financial year.

http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/checkpoint/audio/2502412/evening-business-for-11-november-2011.asx Listen to more from Nigel Morrison on Checkpoint.

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