US commercial gaming revenue hit a new record last year, reaching $66.5 billion in 2023, up 10% year-over-year. Despite numerous economic headwinds and inflation, Americans placed large volumes of wagers and spent on experiences at casinos in 2023. John DeCree, CBRE Capital Advisors Head of Research and Director — Global Gaming, joins Yahoo Finance to discuss how commercial gaming companies and casinos will capitalize on this new record. DeCree elaborates on how the industry is changing and will have to solve mounting problems to continue the growth its seen: "It feels like probably the largest annual increase in operating expenses for casino companies we have seen in a long time. Wages are certainly a big piece of that and after a couple record years of profits, things are catching up, like employees wages. There's pretty significant renegotiating of union contracts that came this year, particularly in Las Vegas. So it is a headwind, I think we're looking at mid single-digit OpEx growth... I think they'll continue to find ways to mitigate costs in other places, and keep driving revenue..." For more expert insight and the latest market action, click here to watch this full episode of Yahoo Finance Live. Editor's note: This article was written by Nicholas Jacobino

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