Some industry analysts see opportunity with Macau stocks. Macau is the only Chinese territory where gambling is legal. The city is trying to rebuild its market with shops, restaurants, entertainment shows and other non-gaming attractions to bring in more middle-class tourism.
BJK follows the MVIS Global Gaming Index, “which is intended to track the overall performance of companies involved in casinos and casino hotels, sports betting, lottery services, gaming services, gaming technology and gaming equipment,” according to VanEck.
BJK, which debuted in early 2008, holds 40 stocks. U.S. companies represent less than 37% of the ETF’s weight while Australia and China combine for about 27%. Overall, 15 countries are represented in BJK, the lone dedicated gambling ETF.
“The second quarter is “off to an encouraging start for Macau’s gaming operators,” Stifel Nicolaus analyst Steven Wieczynski wrote in a Thursday note to clients. “Although we sense a resurgence in VIP play continues to support reported marketwide statistics, we believe the mass market growth story continues to unfold according to plan as well, as supported by marketwide visitation and lodging metric data,” reports CNBC.