IHG swings to a profit in first half

Bengaluru

HOLIDAY Inn's owner IHG swung to a profit in the first half, buoyed by a jump in summer bookings from people vacationing following months of being cooped up at home, but the hotel operator scrapped its dividend to cut costs.

The company on Tuesday said operating profit for the six months ended June 30 stood at US$138 million, compared to a loss of US$233 million last year, while revenue per available room (RevPAR), a key performance indicator, was up 20 per cent.

Covid-19 vaccines and easing restrictions have helped the hospitality industry, but the highly-contagious Delta variant is leading to some uncertainty as cases are rising again and the pace of inoculation is uneven globally.

London-listed IHG said recovery was the most advanced in Greater China and leisure bookings continued to be strong in the United States, its biggest market. The company added that it was seeing a bounce back in business travel as well.

"Essential business travel was a key element of our resilience throughout the pandemic, and we are now seeing more group activity and corporate bookings start to come back," chief executive officer Keith Barr said in a statement.

IHG, which also owns the Crowne Plaza and Regent brands, said as occupancy rates were improving, about half of its hotels achieved RevPAR above pre-pandemic levels in July. The company has about 6,000 hotels in more than 100 countries.

It also said it would be launching a new brand of hotels in coming weeks to strengthen its position in the luxury market. REUTERS