| Carlson Hotels To Open Two New Hotels In Manila | Return to Headlines |
| Carlson Hotels Worldwide, Asia Pacific, has signed management contracts for two new hotels in Manila, the Philippines. The 80-suite Regent Manila Bay and 500-room Radisson Hotel Manila, which are to be built by Hotel Specialists Inc of SM Investments Corporation, are expected to commence operations by 2009. According to Carlson Hotels, these agreements are expected to provide the management group with strategic opportunities in the Philippines, given Manila's position as a gateway city, and it was hoped that this could lead to further development prospects for expansion in the country. | |
| Thailand To Ease Restrictions On Foreign Investments | Return to Headlines |
| Mr Samak Sundaravej, Thailand's newly elected Prime Minister, has announced that the Thai government is likely to lift restrictions on foreign investments imposed by the central bank since December 2006. The restrictions, which were introduced to curb a 16% gain in currency and to protect exporters in late 2006 after the military coup, had dented investor and consumer confidence in Thailand. A formal declaration will be announced in the near term and the decision is expected to encourage foreign investors to acquire local assets and accelerate economic growth in the country. Mr Samak also pledged to bring back the economic policies of former Thai Prime Minister, Dr Thaksin Shinawatra, who in 2003 engineered the fastest economic growth for a decade. A 300-kilometre mass rapid transit system is expected to be one of the top priorities for the new government. | |
| Oaks Hotels Acquires Management Letting Rights of Aurora for US$5.9 million In Brisbane | Return to Headlines |
| Oaks Hotels and Resorts ('Oaks Hotels') has bought the management letting rights of the Aurora apartment tower in Brisbane's Central Business District ('CBD'), Australia, for US$5.9 million. The transaction, which comes after a longstanding legal dispute, also includes the purchase of an associated freehold area for an additional US$1.2 million. This deal is Oaks Hotels' eighth high-rise apartment building in management and will bring the total investment of Oaks Hotels to approximately US$43 million in Brisbane CBD since 2006. | |
| Great Eagle Holdings' Champion REIT To Acquire Mixed-Use Development At Langham Place, Hong Kong For US$1.6 Billion | Return to Headlines |
| Great Eagle Holdings' Champion Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) which currently holds only the Citibank Plaza in Central, Hong Kong has announced its plans to acquire the office tower, retail mall and car park at Langham Place, Mong Kok, Hong Kong, from Great Eagle Holdings ('Great Eagle') for US$1.6 billion. The move is expected to diversify the REIT's revenue streams into both the office and retail sectors. The acquisition is expected to be paid by issuing convertible bonds to raise as much as US$666 million, placing units to raise up to US$581 million and taking up bank loans of up to US$462 million. Great Eagle is expected to utilise the sale proceeds to expand its mainland hotel portfolio. | |
| Grand Hyatt To Open In Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia | Return to Headlines |
| The Brunei Investment Agency has finally received approval to develop the Grand Hyatt hotel located along Jalan Pinang, Kuala Lumpur. The proposal was initially tabled in 2005; however it was approved by the authorities only recently after amendments were made to the proposal. The hotel will be part of a 40-storey mixed-use development comprising a five-star hotel, serviced apartments and office space and is expected to offer 450 guestrooms at a total cost of US$112 million. Scheduled to open in December 2010, the Grant Hyatt is likely to be located at the top floors of the development and guests at the lobby will have an impressive 360-degree view of downtown Kuala Lumpur. | |
| HVS and BISU Host 4th China Hotel Investment Summit in April 2008 | Return to Headlines |
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HVS and Beijing International Studies University (BISU) will be co-hosting the China Hotel Investment Summit (CHIS) for the fourth time from 16 to 18 April 2008. The Summit will be organised jointly by HVS and Phoenix Consulting, and the event will be held at Grand Hyatt Shanghai. The Summit will witness a gathering of hospitality captains, business leaders and hotel investors in China and around the world to discuss the latest hotel investment trends and market developments in Greater China and the rest of Asia. The theme of the 2008 Conference is 'Investing in the Fastest Growing Hotel Markets'. The 4th China Hotel Investment Summit will provide in-depth insights to the vast opportunities for hospitality investments in the ever growing market in China and the galloping economies of Asian countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Korea and Japan. All these economies are in an upswing cycle which will provide a strong growth to the hotel real estate and tourism sectors. The Summit has invited leading expert speakers and panellists, as well as organised social events to maximise networking opportunities. Please visit http://www.chinahotelsummit.com for registration and sponsorship information. For additional information, please contact: Andrew Lee |
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| Absolute Share Price Performance, as at 15 February 2008 |
