The Ascott Continues Expansion in Asia with 7 New Properties

CapitaLand's wholly owned serviced residences business unit, The Ascott, has secured seven new management contracts across seven cities in Asia – Karawang in Indonesia, Putrajaya in Malaysia, Danang in Vietnam, Tokyo in Japan, and Changsha, Shanghai and Shaoxing in China. Lee Chee Koon, Chief Executive Officer of The Ascott Limited, commented “The addition of these seven management contracts will boost our income from management fees. With a strong reputation built for our award-winning brands and the value we provide to property owners through our expertise in design, operations, global sales and marketing, as well as our experience in managing properties worldwide, we are confident of achieving our target of 80,000 units globally by 2020,” The new serviced residences contract will strengthen The Ascott's presence in existing markets, such as Danang, Changsha, Shanghai and Tokyo, as well as introduce the brand name to two new cities in Asia.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Signs First Westin Resort in Australia

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide has signed an agreement with Sekisui House Australia to plan and operate The Westin Coolum Resort & Spa in Queensland's Sunshine Coast – the first resort property in Australia under the Westin Hotels and Resorts banner. Slated to open in 2021, the resort will be part of a proposed mixed use development featuring retail shops, boutiques and luxury apartments. The 220-room Westin Coolum Resort & Spa will offer four dining venues, six spa treatment rooms and 850 square meters of conferences and events space. “The Sunshine Coast accommodation market continues to get stronger and the timing of the Westin Coolum Resort & Spa is perfect given the growing visitor numbers and appeal of this destination, especially with the proposed expansion of the Sunshine Coast Airport, which continues to gather momentum. It is the perfect location for Westin’s first resort style property in Australia”, said Andrew Taylor, Starwood’s Director of Acquisitions and Development for the Pacific region. The resort will join Starwood’s current portfolio of 17 hotels in the Asia Pacific region.

Shangri-La Announces Its Fourth Hotel in Hong Kong

Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts announced the arrival of its fourth hotel in Hong Kong, on Kowloon’s vibrant waterfront. The 545-room Kerry Hotel, which overlooks Victoria Harbor and the Hong Kong Island skyline, is scheduled to open in December this year. The hotel is designed as an urban resort with over 60 percent of its guestrooms offering harbor views. The property will also feature a vibrant food marketplace with ten concepts that incorporate modern and traditional culinary techniques, a 1756 square meter Grand Ballroom, 17 meeting venues that can accommodate from 30 to 660 people, a club lounge, a 25-meter outdoor swimming pool, a 24-hour fitness center and select retail shops. The hotel will begin accepting room reservations from September 2016.

Langkawi to Impose Tourist Levy from July 1

The Langkawi Municipal Council will be imposing a levy on domestic and foreign tourists, starting 1st of July. Known as the Langkawi Tourism Promotion Levy, the fee will range between one ringgit (US$0.25) and nine ringgit (US$2.27) for each day of stay, depending on the traveler’s nature of accommodation. Tourists staying in one and two-orchid (star) rated accommodations will be charged one ringgit per room per night; three ringgit for three- and four-star accommodations; five ringgit for five-star; seven ringgit for six-star, and nine ringgit for seven-star accommodations. The imposition of the levy is part of Langkawi Municipal Council’s plan to reduce its dependence on funding from the state government, and will be utilized for further beautification work on the Langkawi island.

Absolute Share Price Performance, as on 23 June 2016