Featured in this Asia Pacific Hospitality Newsletter - Week Ending 2 June 2006
City Developments Ltd Group To Add Four Singapore Hotels Into US$537 Million REIT
New Hotel At Sydney Olympic Park
Korean Hotels Face Lean Times
Earthquake Damages Half Of The Hotels In Yogyakarta, Jakarta
All Nippon Airways In Talks With InterContinental
Banyan Tree Launches Double Pool Villas
Absolute Share Price Performance, as at 2 June 2006


City Developments Ltd Group To Add Four Singapore Hotels Into US$537 Million REIT Return to Headlines

Property tycoon Kwek Leng Beng is putting four of his Singapore hotels and a shopping mall worth some US$508 million in a real estate investment trust (REIT). The REIT will be launched together with a business trust in a stapled group to be listed on Singapore Stock Exchange. The stapled group comprises newly set-up CDL Hospitality Reit (H-Reit), and CDL Hospitality Business Trust (HBT). H-Reit's initial asset portfolio will include the Orchard Hotel, Grand Copthorne Waterfront Hotel, M Hotel, Copthorne King's Hotel and the Orchard Hotel Shopping Arcade which are worth a total of US$537 million. The properties altogether generated revenues of US$97 million and a before-tax profit of US$25 million in 2005. DBS Bank and HSBC have been appointed as joint financial advisers, joint global coordinators and joint bookrunners for CDL Hospitality Reit Group's initial public offering.


New Hotel At Sydney Olympic Park Return to Headlines

Sydney’s fastest growing commercial and events venue – Sydney Olympic Park – will get its fourth hotel, following the announcement today that Tourism Asset Holdings Limited (TAHL) will develop a new Formule 1 hotel on the site. The 156-room two-star Formule 1 Sydney Olympic Park will be operated by Accor and is scheduled to open in December 2007. The US$14 million development will bring the total number of hotels located within the Park to four and the total number of hotel rooms to 687.


Korean Hotels Face Lean Times Return to Headlines

Korean hotels are feeling the pinch as the strong won keeps foreign tourists away and special tax benefits have disappeared. Super-Deluxe hotels were the biggest victims. They rented fewer rooms to overseas tourists last year than in 2001 even as the number of available rooms surged from 8.56 million to 8.69 million in the same period. Many embarked on renovation projects to lure business travelers and tourists from abroad. The Lotte, Shilla, and the Grand InterContinental Seoul have just completed massive remodeling. At the lower end of the range, international budget chains and hotels that were repositioned as limited-service accommodation for business travelers do better. The Ambassador Hotel Group decided to open a second budget hotel in Myeongdong, Seoul in early May following the success of its Ibis Ambassador, with occupancies running at almost 90 percent.


Earthquake Damages Half Of The Hotels In Yogyakarta, Jakarta Return to Headlines

In addition to the reported tragic loss of over 6,000 people, 50% of the hotels in Yogyakarta were badly damaged by the earthquake of Saturday 27 May 2006. Yogyakarta, known for its unique culture and historical heritage, is Indonesia's second most visited area by foreign tourists after Bali. The Indonesian Hotel and Restaurant Association (PHRI) reported that Yogyakarta has 110 hotels including 12 star-rated hotels of which only seven could continue operations after the quake. PHRI chairperson said many travel agents have cancelled their hotel reservations during for the peak season of June and July.


All Nippon Airways In Talks With InterContinental Return to Headlines
All Nippon Airways Co. (ANA) is considering selling more than half of its hotel business arm —ANA Hotels & Resorts Co., to the InterContinental Hotels Group PLC of Britain. ANA and InterContinental are considering converting some ANA hotels in Japan by combining the two hotel chains' brands (e.g. ANA Crowne Plaza or ANA Holiday Inn). The two hotel chains expect to profit from synergy effects and to attract more customers. ANA Hotel is a high-profile domestic brand and InterContinental is an internationally recognized name. ANA group's hotel operations posted a positive operating profit basis in the business year ending this year on 31 March 2006 after reporting losses for four years in a row. ANA runs a domestic network of 33 hotels in addition to two overseas hotels in Xian, China and Vienna, Austria.

Banyan Tree Launches Double Pool Villas Return to Headlines
Following the launch of 12 deluxe two-bedroom pool villas in August 2005, Banyan Tree Phuket in July of this year will introduce 22 double-pool villas featuring ten-metre-long infinity pools with rates starting from US$2,000+++ per night per villa. Mr. Ho Kwon Ping, Executive Chairman of Banyan Tree Holdings said, "Banyan Tree has always been a firm believer in the need to renew and reinvent itself to keep ahead of the curve. We are confident that the double-pool villa concept, with its 24-hour butler and in-villa chef services, will bring the notion of luxury and exclusivity to new heights."

Absolute Share Price Performance, as at 2 June 2006
Return to Headlines