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1. Foreign Firms Pull Money Out of China
Foreign firms have pulled more than $160 billion in total earnings from China in the past six quarters, signaling the challenges that China is facing to attract foreign capital, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Corporate executives say a range of factors, including a widening gap between China's interest rates and those in the U.S. and Europe, have contributed to the current exodus. Many foreign firms are now looking for better uses of their money.
"Recent surveys of U.S., European and Japanese companies in China show executives are souring on new investments there, unnerved by the prospect of conflict with Taiwan and China’s efforts to tighten oversight of foreign firms operating within its borders. Overall foreign direct investment in China was negative in the third quarter, with outflows of capital exceeding inflows by $11.8 billion—the first negative quarterly outflow recorded in balance-of-payments data that starts in 1998," the Wall Street Journal reports.
2. Experts Advise Mexican Hoteliers on Rebuilding
Mexico is seeing an increased volume of ultra-powerful storms, putting pressure on Mexico to pay special attention to its building structures as Hurricane Otis highlights the weakness in aging buildings, Reuters reports.
Climate experts, architects, engineers and politicians are recommending steps that Mexico must take to build stronger buildings, improve flood water management and enhance storm detection.
"Commercial buildings such as hotels and condos on parts of the Pacific coast should be built to absorb 214 kph winds at most, and in Acapulco, 141 kph winds, according to recommendations in a 2020 design manual from Mexico's state power utility. In Miami, the American Society of Civil Engineers calls for comparable structures to resist 290 kph winds," the article states.
3. Hoteliers Look to Trends, Troubles Ahead
Hotel leaders on a recent panel at the 2023 Indie Lodging Congress said they're keeping a close eye on labor, technology and personalization as they work to adhere to trends and overcome troubles, HNN reports.
Executives have found that providing apprenticeship programs and funds to complete higher education are ways to keep employees engaged. Graduate Hotels, for example, has created its "Graduate Academy," which fully covers an employee's undergraduate tuition.
"We've got people pursuing CPA certifications, human resources certifications; [and] engineering teams pursuing certifications in trades so they can grow with us and continue to advance their career," said Graduate President Kevin Osterhaus.
4. Some Hotels Refuse To Refund Israelis
Some lodging providers are refusing to refund or cancel reservations for Israeli travelers who have been unable to take trips due to the war between Israel and Hamas, the Jerusalem Post reports.
Countries that have most commonly been refusing flexibility include Turkey and the Netherlands. One hotel in Italy at first refused to refund one traveler's cancellation, but eventually refunded 30%.
A Facebook travel group member has begun compiling a list of accommodations, tour guides, travel agencies and vehicle bookings that are not refunding.
"Currently, 25 locations have been added to the blacklist under consideration. Notably, Amsterdam in the Netherlands accounts for 18 entries. The list will remain updated to assist Israelis in making informed decisions about their future vacations once the war with Hamas ends," the news outlet reports.
5. Hilton Grand Vacations Spends $1.5 Billion on Bluegreen Vacations
Hilton Grand Vacations Inc. entered into a definitive agreement to purchase Bluegreen Vacations in an all-cash transaction of $75 per share for a total consideration of roughly $1.5 billion including debt assumption, reports Hotel News Now's Trevor Simpson.
HGV says this will broaden its offerings, customer reach and sales locations. Its membership base will grow from 525,000 to more than 740,000 and its resort portfolio from 150 to nearly 200 properties in 14 new geographies and eight new states.
"Bluegreen Vacations has a strong track record of demonstrated organic growth, a dedicated customer base of more than 200,000 members, and boasts key lead-generating strategic partnerships that will broaden our reach and diversify our tour flow. Along with our long-standing relationship with Hilton, this highly complementary combination will also unlock additional upside by leveraging the infrastructure we have built over the past few years with the launch of the Hilton Vacation Club brand, our HGV Max membership offering, the HGV Ultimate Access experiential platform," Mark Wang, president and CEO of Hilton Grand Vacations, said in a news release.