The US casino industry reported its fifth straight year of annual revenue growth in 2019, a streak that is all but certain to end when the pandemic-plagued 2020 figures are released this time next year.

On Thursday, the American Gaming Association released its annual State of the States report, detailing the US commercial casino sector’s performance in 2019. Last year saw gaming revenue top $43.6b, a 3.7% rise over 2018’s figure, the fifth consecutive year of annual growth and a new record high.

AGA CEO Bill Miller noted that the COVID-19 coronavirus had derailed the casino sector’s momentum, going from “continued record-breaking growth to complete shutdown” in just 11 days this March.

The US gaming industry “has never faced a bigger challenge” but Miller maintains that the sector has bounced back before, as it did after the 2008 global economic meltdown, and expressed confidence that its resilience will see it through this current crisis.