Accor Q3 sales 1.817 billion euro vs 1.897 billion, sees FY pretax profit 700 million euro

(AFX NEWS)  -  Accor SA said third quarter sales came in at 1.817 billion euro, a decrease of 4.2% compared to 1.897 billion over the same period last year.

For the first nine months of the year, sales came in at 5.402 billion euro compared to 5.497 last year.

Accor's hotel division sales fell 0.6% over the first nine months of the year due to the general economic slowdown and the fall in the dollar, the company said.

Accor's services division sales fell by 3.6% for the first nine months, but grew by 16.8% on a comparable basis, due mostly to the devaluation of the Latin American currencies, the company said.

For its other activities, Accor said sales for the first nine months fell by 4.4% or 2.1% on a comparable basis after it sold 50% of its stake in Accor casinos.

Accor said it maintains its 2002 full-year objective of a pretax profit of 700 million euro and EPS of around 2.20 euro.

The company said it expects revenues per available room (REVPAR) for the full-year to grow 0.1% in its European business and leisure hotels and by 3.2% for European economy class hotels, and to fall 3.0% for economic hotels in Europe.  

On view, showstopping hotels

The New York Times   -  Anyone who has spent a night at a hip luxury hotel knows that architecture, amenities and attitude, the so-called three As, are the new benchmarks. Whether these attributes are welcome in a hotel room is up to the guest. But as elements for a museum exhibition, they seem irresistible.

Billed as the first major show to celebrate hotels as architectural, design and cultural phenomena, "New Hotels for Global Nomads," which will be on view until March 2 at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum here, explores more than 35 existing and conceptual hotels. Among them are such fabled historic establishments as Frank Lloyd Wright's Imperial Hotel in Tokyo.

Properties as diverse as Ian Schrager's renovated Clift in San Francisco, the high-tech fantasy Burj al-Arab in Dubai and Japanese "love hotels," where couples go for privacy, are detailed through photography, architecture, furniture, advertisements and works of art. When possible, the exhibition offers the real thing: Two actual Japanese capsule hotel units, big enough for a futon, toothbrush and little else, are on display. Some of the show's more intriguing properties are barely a step away from the drawing board. Hans-Jurgen Rombaut's Lunatic Hotel offers a preview of what accommodations might look like on the moon.

Though hotels have long been trendsetters in design, technology and social customs, the show wouldn't have been possible a decade ago, says its curator, Donald Albrecht. "Hotels today have become design laboratories," he said. Fantasy hotels are a segment of the show, highlighted by such properties as The Hotel in Lucerne, Switzerland, where movie stills are projected on guest room ceilings to create a cinematic environment, but there's a fantasy element in every hotel, Albrecht said, adding "We all want to know what goes on behind those doors."

The Cooper-Hewitt is at East 91st Street and Fifth Avenue. It is closed on Monday and holidays. General admission is $8; for information call: (212) 849-8400 or visit www.ndm.si.edu on the Internet.

Four Seasons announces preliminary third quarter results

(Canada NewsWire) - Four Seasons Hotels Inc. (TSX Symbol "FSH"; NYSE Symbol "FS") announced today that it expects earnings for the third and fourth quarter of 2002 to be lower than the guidance provided by the Company at the end of the second quarter. As indicated following the end of the second quarter, there was at that time, and remains, significant uncertainty regarding the timing, extent and pace of the economic recovery, making it particularly difficult to develop forward-looking information with confidence.

OPERATING ENVIRONMENT

The continued volatility of the equity markets and the weakening global economy, combined with localized terrorist activities in various areas of the world and broader concerns about terrorism and potential military actions against Iraq, have continued to cause unprecedented volatility in business travel on a global basis. Leisure travel is also being negatively affected in certain areas due to both terrorist acts and adverse economic conditions.

In addition to these more general factors, specific local events have caused unanticipated disruptions to the operations of certain of the Company's properties. As a result of a dispute with its owners, the Four Seasons Hotel Caracas has been effectively closed and is expected to remain closed until the dispute is resolved and the hotel's debt and working capital arrangements can be restructured to provide sufficient funds to allow the property to operate on the basis specified in the Company's management agreement. In the third quarter, the Four Seasons Hotel Prague closed because of severe flooding. The Regent Hotel in Jakarta, which was also closed because of flooding in February of this year, has not yet reopened. The two Four Seasons resorts in Bali are experiencing significant cancellations following the recent acts of terrorism in the area.

As well, the New York market continues to have particular difficulty recovering from the events of and following September 11, 2001. That market has been very hard hit by the depressed level of activity in the US capital markets. These conditions cause a unique problem to Four Seasons because of the Company's 100% ownership interest in The Pierre, and the fees that Four Seasons normally earns in that market.

MANAGEMENT AND OWNERSHIP OPERATIONS

Fee revenues for the third quarter are likely to be approximately $4 million below the levels anticipated by the Company in August when the guidance was provided, primarily as a result of reduced base and incentive fees and lower fees from the Company's residential projects. The incentive fee variance is the result of reduced incentive fees from several Four Seasons hotels and due principally to the weak travel conditions during the quarter, which worsened in late September, particularly in the resorts under management. Two of the Company's properties under management experienced profitability declines over the course of the third quarter, causing them to miss their hurdle targets. This has required the reversal in the third quarter of approximately $1 million of incentive fees booked in the first and second quarter of 2002. The continuing softness of the US economy and ongoing decline in consumer confidence levels have also resulted in fees from residential projects being less than the Company's previous short-term expectations.

Hotel ownership losses in the third quarter likely will exceed the levels anticipated by the Company at the time guidance was provided by approximately $1 million. The majority of this loss was generated by The Pierre, which experienced an unanticipated decline in profitability resulting in a loss before other operating items even greater than that incurred in the third quarter of 2001.

ASSET PROVISIONS

During the third quarter, the Company was not able to achieve a timely resolution of the dispute with the owner of the Four Seasons Hotel Caracas. In addition, the necessary reorganization of the capital structure of the hotel remains outstanding. As a result, the hotel has been closed and the Company does not anticipate a reopening in the near term. The Company expects to take a provision of approximately $16.1 million against this investment in the third quarter of 2002.

In addition, the Company is finalizing its review of its investments and anticipates that one other provision of approximately $7 million may be required in the third quarter. The Company continues to maintain a strong balance sheet with cash and cash equivalents in excess of $190 million.

OPERATING OUTLOOK

As a result of continuing weakness and uncertainty in travel globally and the asset provisions noted above, the Company anticipates that it will realize a diluted loss per share of $0.35 for the third quarter ended September 30, 2002 (of which approximately $0.50 of the loss per share is expected to result from the asset impairment provision), as compared to previously expected diluted earnings per share of approximately $0.24 to $0.28 for the third quarter ended September 30, 2002.

The Company will be announcing its third quarter earnings on November 8, 2002, at which time it will provide more detail concerning its third quarter results. The Company also expects to provide future guidance that will reflect the continuing impact of the above noted factors on the fourth quarter. The Company will host a conference call on November 8, 2002 at 10:00 a.m. (Eastern Standard Time).

To access the call dial: 1 (888) 793-1722 (U.S.A. and Canada)

1 (416) 620-5690 (outside U.S.A. and Canada)

To access a replay of the call, which will be available for one week after the call, dial: 1 (800) 558-5253, Reservation Number 20965620.

A live web cast will also be available by visiting http://www.fourseasons.com/investor

China proposes Lancang-Mekong tourism zone

The government of southwestern China's Yunnan province has proposed the creation of a tourism zone along the Lancang-Mekong rivers in collaboration with Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar, Laos, Cambodia and Vietnam.

The proposal was put forth by a Yunnan official during a recent international seminar organized to discuss the establishment of an east-west economic corridor. According to the proposal, six cross-border travel routes will be established.

The first would link tourist destinations in China, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. The second would link Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Myanmar and China. The third would link Thailand, Myanmar, Laos and China. The fourth would link China, Thailand, Singapore and Malaysia. The fifth would link Laos, Myanmar and China, and the sixth China, Vietnam, Cambodia and Thailand.

Yunnan is ready to open air, water, highway and railway transport routes to the above-mentioned countries.

At present, visitors to Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam and China find it inconvenient to travel to the Southeast Asian countries because of the absence of an international agreement on entry and exit procedures and on currency circulation.

If the tourism zone becomes a reality, it will serve as an experimental model for the development of the China-ASEAN Free Trade Zone, the official said.

(Asia Pulse/XIC)

Interstate Hotels Posts Narrower Loss

(Reuters) - Interstate Hotels & Resorts , the company formed from the July merger of Interstate Hotels Corp. and Meristar Hotels & Resorts, said on Monday its third-quarter operating loss narrowed as it increased occupancy and cut costs.

Excluding one-time items, Interstate's loss narrowed to $500,000, or 3 cents per share, from $4.1 million, or 20 cents per share, a year earlier. The numbers are adjusted to assume the merger closed on Jan. 1, 2001.

On a noncomparable basis, Interstate said its net loss widened to $22.4 million, or $1.30 per share, from $4.4 million, or 72 cents per share.

On a comparable basis, revenue rose to $274.9 million from $283.3 million last year.

Interstate said it expects to earn $10 million to $12 million in the fourth quarter before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, with net income at 4 cents to 10 cents per share. For 2003, the company projects EBITDA of $36 million to $40 million, up from $30 million to $32 million estimated for this year, and net income of 30 cents to 40 cents per share, compared with an expected net loss of 2 cents to 8 cents for 2002. 

Dubai chosen for International Spa Association 2004 Annual Congress

Dubai has been selected as ‘first choice venue’ to host the Annual Spa Congress 2004 of the International Spa Association (ISPA), the global industry body committed to raising world-wide awareness of the spa leisure sector. The event is being held under the patronage of the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM) and marks another triumph for the department in attracting increased conference business to Dubai.

The decision was taken by ISPA Europe and its Board of Directors following a recent fact-finding visit to the emirate by Carina Billetun, President of ISPA’s European chapter.

"Work will now officially commence to prepare the programme and to negotiate for the congress venue, event hosts and sponsors," said Daniella Russell, Director, Health & Leisure, MKM Group, which owns and operates the luxury Cleopatra's Spa brand, and the Middle East’s first ISPA board representative.

Up to 500 delegates from 30 countries across Europe and Asia are expected to attend the 2004 congress, which Russell says will be a major boost for Dubai and the regional spa and wellness industry.

"The conference will enable us to demonstrate to global industry professionals the extent and quality of the Middle East’s facilities," added Russell.

Awadh Al Seghayer, DTCM’s Manager, Heritage Sites and Events, said the importance of the meetings and conventions business to Dubai’s tourism industry could not be underestimated.

"To ensure that Dubai attracts more meetings and conferences, the DTCM participates in a series of events around the world that focus on the business travel segment including Asia-Pacific Incentive and Meetings Expo (Melbourne), UK Conferences and Incentives Exhibition (London), European Incentive and Business Travel Meetings Exhibition (Geneva) and Incentive Travel and Meetings Executives Show (USA) among others," he said. 

"We showcase the facilities and services that have made Dubai the Middle East’s leading conference and exhibition venue," remarked Mr. Al Seghayer.

Moreover, the staging of the Annual General Meeting of the World Bank/IMF in September 2003 in Dubai is expected to provide much-needed momentum to the expansion of the MICE market in Dubai

ASEAN Tourism Pact to be signed at Phnom Penh Summit

Heads of state of the ten Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) member countries are to sign the region's first tourism cooperation and promotion agreement at their 8th Summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, between November 4-7, 2002.

The agreement is designed to give a major boost to facilitation of intra-ASEAN travel, market access, safety and security, joint marketing and promotion campaigns, sustainable development as well as human resources development.

Thailand's Minister of Tourism and Sports H.E. Mr. Sontaya Kunplome commented, "The Agreement will give a further impetus to the work being done by the ASEAN National Tourism Organisations (NTOs) to promote tourism flows to/from and within the region. It will also boost our regional joint tourism "Visit ASEAN Campaign." The Agreement will have a significant impact on the future of travel to and within ASEAN. Article 2 of the Agreement says: "Member states shall facilitate travel within and into ASEAN by:

Extending visa exemption arrangement for nationals of ASEAN Member States travelling within the region on the basis of bilateral visa exemption agreements concluded between Member States that are ready to do so;

Harmonising the procedures for issuing visas to international travellers;

Phasing out travel levies and travel taxes on nationals of ASEAN Member States travelling to other ASEAN Member States;

Encouraging the use of smart cards for ASEAN business and frequent travellers and, where appropriate, for cross-border travel on the basis of bilateral agreements concluded between Member States that are ready to do so;

Improving communications with international travellers through the use of universal symbols and multi-lingual signs and forms; and

Easing the process of issuance of travel documents and progressively reducing all travel barriers."

The initiative for signing the ASEAN Tourism Agreement was raised by Cambodian Prime Minister Samdech Hun Sen during the 7th ASEAN Summit in Bandar Seri Begawan, Indonesia in November 2001.

At the 5th NTOs meeting in Yogyakarta earlier in 2002, tourism-related ministers endorsed the ASEAN Tourism Agreement as a "reaffirmation at the highest political levels of the importance of the travel and tourism sector for ASEAN economic integration and in the greater mutual understanding and solidarity amongst the people of ASEAN."

They also welcomed an offer by Cambodian Senior Minister and Tourism Minister Mr. Veng Sereyvuth to lead a high-level task force to formulate the agreement for signing at the 8th ASEAN Summit in Phnom Penh.

The background of tourism cooperation in the ASEAN region dates back to 1976 when the ASEAN Committee on Trade and Tourism set up a sub-committee to deal exclusively with the sector.

Its tourism-related achievements included the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) organised annually since 1981, the successful Visit ASEAN Year campaign in 1992, the Visit ASEAN Campaign in 2001, the progressive negotiations under the Free Trade Agreement on Services as well as the inaugural meeting of ASEAN+3 with China, Japan and Korea.

Vietnam anticipates tourism boost in the wake of Bali attack

ABC Radio News -  Vietnam expects to welcome more international tourists in the wake of the devastating bomb blasts on Indonesia's resort island of Bali that rocked South-East Asia.

Officials say the country could exceed its target of 2.5 million international visitors and 12 million domestic holidaymakers this year.

From January to October, more than two million tourists visited Vietnam, a 13.3 per cent increase over the same period in 2001.

Visitors are most likely to hail from China, Japan, the United States, France or South Korea.

The communist state was recently ranked by the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy as the safest Asia-Pacific country for business.

Vietnam's hotel industry records leap in foreign investment

(Asia Pulse)  -  Vietnam's hospitality industry is picking up after a long slump. So far this year, there has been 13 foreign-invested projects worth nearly US$ 48 million licensed in the hotel sector.

* This is a leap from past levels of US $ 10 million in 2001 and only US$ 1.1 million in 1999.

* Coastal central and southern cities surrounding and including the world heritage listed town of Hoi An are the focus of the most recent investments, instead of Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City.

European Tour Operator’s Association survey launched at WTM shows Europe lost 1 M visitors & Euro 5M in revenue in 2002

Proposed EU Tax Rules Could Also Cost EURO 2 Billion Of Business And Force Operators Off-Shore Tour operators in Europe lost over one million customers in the year to October 2002 according to a new survey launched at World Travel Market by the European Tour Operators' Association.

Revealing what it calls a 'severe crisis' the latest ETOA survey demonstrates that, not only did its members throughout Europe carry 1 million less visitors in the year to October 2002, down to 5.6 million, but that these visitors also spent less, resulting in a 28% drop in revenue for the year. Said ETOA Executive Director Tom Jenkins: "It is possible that we are now witnessing a permanently unstable market. Events such as September 11 are random, and unpredictable, and wreck otherwise viable businesses". To make matters worse, the ETOA survey also showed that if there was another 'incident' in the Middle East, such as a war on Iraq, then members would expect a further drop of 38% in business - effectively halving business over a two year period.

A further major problem affecting tour operators into Europe highlighted by the ETOA survey centres on a proposal by the European Commission to 'simplify, modernise and harmonise' the taxation of travel products". If these plans goes through ETOA believes that many EU in-bound tour operators will have to base themselves outside the EU, in order to survive - a move that will take EURO 2 billion of business with them. Added Tom Jenkins: "The proposals aim at a "one-size- fits-all" solution, which ignores the realities of the important inbound tourist trade. Unlike much of the EU travel trade, which is handling business within the EU, the inbound sector has to compete in a global market. This is an intensely competitive industry. When there is a perceived parity in quality, a consumer will switch supplier for as little as 0.5% of the sale price".

ETOA believes that, as a result of the way in which Value Added Tax is applied to the services they sell European tour operators are placed at a 'massive disadvantage' The EU now wants to stamp out the tax advantages that countries such as Ireland, Denmark, the Netherlands and the UK offer, a move which ETOA believes would threaten some 3,000 jobs in the UK alone. Added Tom Jenkins: "The proposed measures merely provides a further incentive for the companies operating in the EU to close down and set up outside the EU, so that they can remain competitive. "It is hardly surprising that the result of this taxation has been the near-complete removal of such inbound tour operators from the EU. Those who were based here have folded, emigrated offshore or moved to one of the countries that offer some relief against the impact of the tax".

CHIP Hospitality wins Health and Safety Award

CHIP Hospitality is the BC winner of the 2002 North American Occupational Health and Safety Week award in the tourism and hospitality category.

Presented at the 2002 Safety Forum and Awards Luncheon in Richmond, BC on October 23, 2002, the award came as a result of CHIP’s participation in Occupational Health and Safety Week last May.  For several years, the Canadian government has celebrated OSH Week with the United States and Mexico, under the banner of the North American Occupational Safety and Health (NAOSH) Week. The goal of NAOSH Week is to focus the attention of employers, employees, the general public and all partners in occupational health and safety on the importance of preventing injury and illness in the workplace.

Every property within the CHIP Hospitality community, with guidance from the Corporate and Regional Human Resource Services leadership team, developed a week long event focusing on safety and wellness issues specific to their employee populations.  Different topics were introduced each day ­ from accident and injury prevention to stress management ­ with hotel staff as well as partners from the community involved in the planning and delivery of education sessions.  Helping employees understand the importance of working together to provide a safe and nurturing environment for their guests, business partners, and colleagues was the key message of the initiative.  

“It’s a great honour to receive this award,” said CHIP Hospitality’s Vice-President of Human Resources, Sharon MacKay.  “This is another great example of how seriously we take our ongoing corporate responsibility to the communities where we operate.  The everyday health and safety of our customers and employee associates is an important part of our overall corporate philosophy and reflects our motto ­ Hotels with a Heart.” MacKay said examples of the company’s community involvement through the Hotels with a Heart program include:

‘Extreme Kindness Rates’ as low as CDN $59, which are available at CHIP hotels in Canada and Washington State, with partial proceeds going to support local charities. 

‘Friends in Need,’ which provides hotel rooms at extremely low rates during the Christmas period so that families can be together in comfort. Funds raised from these low rates are donated to homeless shelters in each community.  Last year, the corporation raised $227,000 for communities across Canada. 

A ‘Kids Stay Free’ program at its Howard Johnson Inns for kids under 18 years of age accompanied by an adult.   Participants are eligible to win a $50,000 college scholarship.

Assistance for Aboriginal students to further their studies through a tourism scholarship program.

CHIP was also recently recognized as the first hotel chain in Canada to receive a three Green Leaf or higher eco-rating for all its properties from the Hotel Association of Canada.

CHIP Hospitality is one of Canada’s leading hotel management companies and is focused on the mid-market to upscale, full-service and extended stay hotels. They currently manage 36 hotels in Canada and Washington State with more than 8,100 rooms.  As a subsidiary of CHIP REIT (Canadian Hotel Income Properties Real Estate Investment Trust), CHIP Hospitality is the exclusive operator of the REIT’s owned hotels. 

CHIP Hospitality also manages hotels and resorts for third party owners. CHIP uses management strategies, upgrades, repositioning and franchising to improve the operating performance of the properties within its portfolio to create value for investors and owners. 

The company has a strong corporate philosophy of community support.  CHIP REIT units trade on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol HOT.un and HOT.db. 

Visit  www.GreatCanadianHotels.com or    www.CHIPhospitality.com