Hotel buys in Asia to rise 60% to a record $8 bn
Hotel buys in Asia to rise 60% to a record $8 bn
Jean Chua and Bernard Lo/ Bloomberg
Singapore: Asia-Pacific hotel acquisitions will rise 60% to a record $8 billion (Rs32,800 crore) this year as investors expand into new markets such as China and India, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels has said.
The region will be the fastest-growing in the world for hotel acquisitions, Arthur de Haast, chief executive officer of Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, a hospitality property consulting company, said.
Investors such as Morgan Stanley have been buying hotels in Asia on expectations that the region’s economic growth will drive demand for travel. Global hotel buys rose 53% to $72 billion last year as companies sell assets while retaining income from managing the properties, show data from Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels.
Acquisitions are driven by “the sheer volume of liquidity in the market and the considerable interest in the industry on expectations that earnings growth are going to continue to accelerate, particularly in this region," de Haast said.
US and European buyout firms and hotel groups in Asia, such as Hong Kong’s Shangri-La Asia Ltd and India’s Oberoi Associated Hotels Ltd, are “actively seeking targets," he said. They may also buy more properties as they expand globally, de Haast said.
— Anand Menon in Singapore contributed to this story
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