People wearing protective masks walk in front of the Casino Lisboa, operated by SJM Holdings Ltd., at night in Macao, on March 3, 2020.  (BILLY HC KWOK / BLOOMBERG)

Macao gaming revenue showed little sign of improvement, notching a sixth straight month of declines of at least 90 percent, as a gradual relaxation of travel and visa curbs by the Chinese mainland has so far brought few visitors.

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Gross gaming revenue fell 90 percent to 2.21 billion patacas (US$277 million) in September from a year earlier, according to data from the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau. That was worse than the median analyst estimate for an 86 percent decline.

Macao has seen only a trickle of arrivals even though visas have been made available to residents in Guangdong province -- which previously accounted for a third of Macao’s visitors -- since late August

Macao has seen only a trickle of arrivals even though visas have been made available to residents in Guangdong province -- which previously accounted for a third of Macao’s visitors -- since late August.

Casino floors have remained largely empty as inconvenient requirements still make it difficult to enter Macao from the mainland, such as obtaining a negative virus test. Other destinations such as Hainan are proving a draw for mainland travelers with such perks as duty-free shopping.

Macao trails other gambling hubs in bouncing back from COVID-19. The Las Vegas Strip, for example, saw gaming revenue recover to 60 percent of last year’s level in July after casinos gradually began reopening in early June.

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The industry expects gaming revenue during China’s Golden Week, which started Thursday, to be about 30-50 percent of last year’s level, said Linda Chen, vice chairman of Wynn Macau Ltd.

The Bloomberg Intelligence index of Macao casino operators dropped 15 percent in September amid the slow pace of recovery and analyst downgrades. The benchmark Hang Seng Index fell 6.8 percent in the same period.