HVS Completes Acquisition of Residence Inn Downtown, Montreal, on Behalf of Private Client

On behalf of a private Middle Eastern client, HVS Vancouver, with support of HVS Asset Management, has completed the acquisition of the Residence Inn Downtown, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

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UOL Group Limited Sells Pan Pacific Suzhou Unit

Singapore-based UOL Group Limited (“UOL”) has sold its China unit Suzhou Wugong Hotel Company Limited (“SWHC”), which owns Pan Pacific Suzhou hotel. The entire interest in SWHC is sold through its indirect wholly-owned subsidiary, Hotel Investments (Suzhou) Private Limited (“HIS”) to China-based Bao Chang Long (Beijing) Commercial Management Company Limited (“Bao Chang Long”) under a conditional sale-and-purchase agreement for a total net cash consideration of RMB408 million yuan (SGD80 million). Located at Xin Shi Road, the 480-key hotel has an unexpired leasehold term of about 25 years. UOL’s hospitality arm, Pan Pacific Hotels Group, will enter into a hotel management agreement with Bao Chang Long to continue operating the hotel as Pan Pacific Suzhou. The deal also grants Bao Chang Long the ownership of the eight apartment units owned by SWHC in Suzhou that are used as staff quarters. Upon completion of the deal, SWHC will cease to be a UOL subsidiary.

Veriu Group Divests Veriu Central Hotel for AUD55 Million in Sydney, Australia

Australia-based boutique hotel chain, Veriu Group (“Veriu”), has announced the divestment of the Veriu Central Hotel to Australia-based Tyche Capital Holdings Limited. The transaction of the freehold heritage property was concluded for AUD55 million under a sale-and-leaseback agreement. Located at 75 Wentworth Avenue, the 112-key hotel is positioned within Sydney’s southern Central Business District fringe and the precinct of Surry Hills. Having rebranded from the Central Station Hotel in 2016, Veriu Central Hotel is positioned as a lifestyle hotel, featuring four retail tenancies within its heritage façade.  Subsequent to the divestment, the Veriu now operates over 18 hotels across the eastern seaboard, with a pipeline of 6 new hotels slated to be opened over the next 2 years, including greenfield sites in Green Square (New South Wales), as well as Queen Victoria Market, Collingwood and Alphington (Victoria).

AirAsia X Announces New Kuala Lumpur-Tokyo Narita Service

Malaysia-based long-haul, low-cost airline AirAsia X Berhad (“AirAsia X”) has announced the launch of a direct service connecting Kuala Lumpur International Airport and Tokyo Narita International Airport. Commencing on 20 November this year, the four-times weekly service will operate on every Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday. The low-cost carrier is scheduled to depart from Kuala Lumpur at 0015 and land at Tokyo Narita Airport at 0815, while the return flight is set to leave Tokyo at 0930 before landing in Kuala Lumpur at 1535. The new Kuala Lumpur-Tokyo Narita route will complement AirAsia X’s existing daily flight to Tokyo Haneda Airport and deliver over 156,000 additional visitors through Narita Airport annually. AirAsia X currently operates seven weekly flights between Kuala Lumpur and Haneda Airport, as well as 21 weekly flights between Bangkok’s Don Mueang International Airport and Narita Airport.

Night Tours Gains Increasing Popularity in China

According to a recent report by Chinese largest online travel agency, Ctrip.com International Limited (“Ctrip”), night tours and events are increasing in popularity in China. Ctrip reported that group tours, admission tickets and other bookings of events during the night in July soared by 60% over June. For some cities, old towns and tourist attractions, the scenes are more attractive and enjoyable during night than in the day.  An example is that of the riverside of the Huangpu River in Shanghai and the West Lake in Hangzhou. Meanwhile, watching concerts, stage plays, fireworks and some other events are also popular evening activities. According to Qunar, a major online travel firm, room rates of hotels in the city rose by 10% on average this summer over last summer, and the number of people staying at luxury hotels accounted for 25% of the total, with occupancy registering a year-on-year increase of 7%.

Absolute Share Price Performance, as on 30 August 2019