South Korea’s largest casino operator Paradise Co Ltd saw its profit fall by nearly half in Q2.

Paradise, which operates five of South Korea’s 16 foreigners-only casinos and is constructing the Paradise City integrated resort near Incheon, said profit fell 47.1% to KRW12.6b (US $10.9m) in the three months ending June 30. Total revenue was down 17% to KRW 143b ($123m), driven by a 17.6% decline in gaming revenue to KRW 122.7b ($105.5m).

Table drop was down at all five Paradise properties, with the flagship Walker-Hill property in Seoul – currently the country’s largest gaming venue – falling 27% to KRW 590b. Paradise’s two properties on Jeju island – Jeju Grand and Jejue Lotte – were down 19% and 30% respectively. Paradise Casino Busan took the hardest hit, falling nearly 36% while the existing Incheon property fared best, slipping a mere 2%.

Paradise’s woes stem from several factors, including an outbreak of Middle East Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) in Korea that has finally begun showing signs of containment. The Chinese government hasn’t helped matters, warning other Asia-Pacific countries to stop luring its citizens abroad for the purpose of gambling, going as far as to single out Jeju casinos as serial offenders and arresting Koreans acting as travel agents for Korean casinos.