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1. US Government Averts Government Funding Lapse
Congress passed a spending bill to keep the federal government funded until Feb. 18, according to the New York Times. Funding would have run out this weekend, leading to a shutdown.
The final vote Thursday came after Republican senators “dropped a threat to force a shutdown over the Biden administration’s vaccine mandates," the article states. The House passed the spending bill earlier in the day 221 to 212, and the Senate voted for it 69 to 28.
2. Sonesta Hotels CEO Says Company Ready To Move to Next Stage of Growth
In video interview, Sonesta International Hotels Corp. President and CEO Carlos Flores said further maturity is the key to the firm’s growth, reports HNN's Bryan Wroten. The company’s portfolio has grown to nearly 1,200 assets following conversions of hotels owned by real estate investment trust Service Properties Trust and the acquisition of RLH Corp.
Flores said the company's focus over the last five to 10 years has been in preparation for significant scale.
“We’ve been ready to a certain extent for this, but with that level of change, we’re going through that metabolism process,” he said.
3. US Hotel Performance Hits Record Thanksgiving High
U.S. hotel performance came in higher than any other Thanksgiving week on record, according to CoStar’s hospitality analytics firm, STR. Thanks to a four-day holiday weekend, occupancy for the week was 53%, up 4.6% compared to the same period in 2019. Average daily rate and revenue per available room both increased by double-digit percentages, with ADR up 14.3% to $128.41 and RevPAR up 19.6% to $68.
None of the top 25 U.S. markets posted lower ADR than the comparable week in 2019. Phoenix reported the largest ADR increase of 35.1%, to $143.30, while the largest RevPAR declines were in Oahu Island, dropping 20.7% to $147.63 and San Francisco/San Mateo falling 18.1% to $76.37.
4. Fortress Acquires Majority Stake in Prem Group
New York City-based Fortress Investment Group bought a majority stake in Irish hotel and aparthotel firm Prem Group for an undisclosed price through an off-market acquisition of interests, according to a news release.
“The investment by Fortress Investment Group will provide significant further capital for expansion, into countries such as Germany where we don’t currently have a presence," Prem CEO Jim Murphy said in the release.
The firm, which owns and/or manages hotels, has 38 assets and more than 3,000 rooms in Ireland, Belgium, The Netherlands and U.K., according to its website.
5. 67 Countries Back Trade Deal Projected To Save Billions
Sixty-seven member countries of the World Trade Organization, including the United Kingdom and U.S., have signed a deal to cut trade costs by 113 billion pounds sterling [$150 billion] per year, according to a U.K. government release.
The deal is intended to help cut red tape around licensing and qualifications and is set to reduce services trade costs by up to 7% annually.
“British businesses consistently cite complex administrative procedures as barriers to accessing international markets," the release states. "The new rules will make it easier for businesses of all sizes, particularly small- and medium-sized enterprises, to navigate foreign markets and obtain authorization to export overseas.”