According to Singapore Tourism Board (STB), the number of Chinese tourists to Singapore hit an all-time high of 880,188 last year, an increase of 55% compared to 2003 levels. China has emerged in recent years as one of the key feeder markets to Singapore. However, Singapore faces increasing competition not only from traditional hot spots for Chinese tourists like Hong Kong and Macau, but also from new destinations such as Vietnam and Malaysia. Furthermore, statistics from STB also suggest that while more Chinese are visiting Singapore over the years, the trend is that they are making Singapore just one of the stops in their itinerary. The number of outbound Chinese tourists almost doubled from 10.5 million in 2000 to 20.2 million in 2003 and according to estimates from the World Tourism Organisation, China will have 100 million outbound travellers and become the fourth largest source of outbound travel in the world in 15 years.

Emaar Properties, the Middle East's largest real estate development company has awarded Accor the management contract for Novotel Hyderabad. The hotel will serve the Cyberabad Convention Centre currently being built by the Dubai-based property developer along with its joint venture partner Andhra Pradesh Industrial Infrastructure Corporation Limited. The Centre, India's largest and first purpose built convention centre, will open in December 2005 followed by the 300-room Novotel in March 2006, both in time for an Asian Development Bank meeting scheduled in Hyderabad in May 2006. The Cyberabad Convention Centre will offer 13,000 square metres of meeting space including a main hall which will accommodate up to 6,160 delegates. An additional 12 meeting rooms will also be available. Novotel Hyderabad is the first new-built Novotel for Accor in India and is part of the group's aggressive expansion in South Asia. In March 2005, Accor and InterGlobe Enterprises announced the launch of two joint venture companies to develop a network of up 25 Ibis hotels around India in the next 10 years and hotels under the Sofitel, Novotel and Mercure brands.

Sarovar Park Plaza Hotels & Resorts, which has the master franchise rights for the Park Plaza and Park Inn hotel brands in India, has signed up Park Plaza properties in Mumbai and Delhi. In Mumbai, the property will have 198 rooms along with 25 suites and will be positioned as a business hotel. It is due to open in the second half of this year. The Delhi property is slated to open in 2006 with 71 guestrooms and suites.

Sydney developer the Lyon Group has forged into northern Queensland and announced a US$60 million redevelopment of the Mercure Townsville complex. The group plans to build an additional 162 units and 8 townhouses on the hotel's surplus land. The Lyon Group acquired Mercure Townsville for about US$6 million in a deal settled 6 weeks ago. The property was bought from interests associated with Singapore group Signatories. The Mercure hotel is located on a 4.4 hectare site on Woodcock Street and fronts an artificial lake. According to Bruce Lyon, the group's managing director, the new residential stock will be built in three stages over the next four years.

The government of Australia has allocated more than US$345 million to the tourism industry in its federal budget. According to Tourism Minister Fran Bailey, the money will be spent to promote Australia as a world-class destination overseas and to encourage more Australians to holiday at home. More than US$300 million will be invested in Tourism Australia over the next three years while an additional US$15 million will be spent over four years for regional tourism projects. Nearly US$3 million will also be dedicated to assist Indigenous tourism businesses and another US$5.7 million over the next three years for tourism projects under the Australian Tourism Development Program to help attract more tourists to regional Australia.