Are the Turkish Cypriot casinos going out of fashion?

GC spending in north and Turkey drops 6% in 2011

Spending by Greek Cypriots in northern Cyprus and Turkey dropped by 6% in 2011 to EUR 10.0 mln, from EUR 10.7 mln in 2010, according to data from JCC Payment Systems.
One of the biggest falls was recorded in the category of entertainment, which also includes casinos that are banned in the Greek Cypriot south.
Spending on entertainment in both the north and Turkey dropped by 28.7% to EUR 1.48 mln from EUR 2.07 mln in 2010. It is not clear why spending dropped but there are three possible reasons.
First, it could simply be a switch from card to cash payments as Greek Cypriots try not to be noticed by their own authorities. Spending money in the northern part of Cyprus is still considered taboo in many circles.
Second, it could be the negative impact on demand of rising unemployment and slower economic growth.
Finally, it could be the impact on demand in the north of the dozens of betting shops offering “online casinos” that have proliferated in the southern part of the island in the past year or so.
Spending on airlines also dropped in 2011, but this appears to be for methodological reasons.
In 2011 JCC started to separate out spending in the north from spending in Turkey. In 2011, spending in the north (occupied areas) reached EUR 5.2 mln, while spending in Turkey reached EUR 4.8 mln. Most of the spending in the north was on hotels (EUR 1.68 mln) and entertainment (EUR 1.25 mln), while most of the spending in Turkey was on hotels (EUR 1.11 mln) and airlines (EUR 882m394).

Fiona Mullen
www.sapientaeconomics.com