'Gangwon Land' Expected in the With-Corona Era

by Ryu Hyunseok

Published 18 Sep.2021 18:20(KST)

Updated 24 Jul.2023 19:44(KST)

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunseok Yoo] Gangwon Land is expected to benefit from the 'With Corona' era.

According to the financial investment industry on the 18th, Gangwon Land closed at 28,350 KRW the previous day. This is a 2.35% increase compared to the end of last month and a 20.64% rise compared to the end of last year.

As COVID-19 prolongs, social distancing continues. However, the domestic vaccination rate is also increasing. In particular, the possibility of transitioning to 'With Corona' is rising. There is growing expectation that Gangwon Land will also benefit once the transition to With Corona occurs.

Lee Hwajeong, a researcher at NH Investment & Securities, explained, "Currently, the allowable number of guests at Gangwon Land is 1,800, which is about 30% of normal capacity," adding, "Nevertheless, the daily reservation number already reaches 8,000, which is the average daily visitors before COVID-19." She further stated, "Since there is definite demand for visits, whether business operations return to normal will be the key to performance recovery."

Improved performance in the third quarter is also anticipated. NH Investment & Securities expects Gangwon Land's third-quarter sales to be 272.5 billion KRW, a 256% increase compared to the same period last year, and operating profit to turn positive at 4.2 billion KRW. The researcher emphasized, "With the improvement in casino operations and the expectation of strong performance in the non-casino sector due to seasonal factors, sales recovery is expected. Despite limited operations in the second quarter, sales recovery was driven by increases in both visitor numbers and per capita spending."

The researcher also explained that the fourth quarter can be expected to perform well following the third quarter. He said, "Under the revised social distancing measures, business operations will not be suspended even if the distancing level is raised," adding, "Rather, with preparations for transitioning to ‘With Corona’ due to rising vaccination rates, the remaining second half of the year is expected to show more comfortable performance."