Middle East, Africa Hotels Post Mixed Performance Results in January

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According to STR, hotels in the Middle East reported mixed performance results in January 2018, while hotels in Africa posted growth across the three key performance metrics.

U.S. dollar constant currency, January 2018 vs. January 2017

Middle East

• Occupancy: +1.9% to 69.1%
• Average daily rate (ADR): -3.4% to US$170.28
• Revenue per available room (RevPAR): -1.6% to US$117.75

Africa

• Occupancy: +5.7% to 53.4%
• Average daily rate (ADR): +2.6% to US$126.55
• Revenue per available room (RevPAR): +8.4% to US$67.54

Local currency, January 2018 vs. January 2017

Morocco

• Occupancy: +16.3% to 54.1%
• ADR: +28.5% to MAD129.16
• RevPAR: +49.5% to MAD69.90

The year-over-year increase in RevPAR was the first for a January in Morocco since 2014. STR analysts attribute a spike in demand (+16.1%) to the FIA Formula E Championship race in Marrakech as well as Marrakech Marathon.

Nigeria

• Occupancy: +8.6% to 41.4%
• ADR: -11.2% to NGN136.09
• RevPAR: -3.6% to NGN56.38

STR analysts note that Nigeria's hotel industry continues to be affected by a poor reputation around security concerns in the country. Regardless, the 8.6% year-over-year lift in occupancy was the country's highest for any January since 2013.

Saudi Arabia

• Occupancy: +6.4% to 59.5%
• ADR: -5.2% to SAR566.34
• RevPAR: +0.9% to SAR336.70

The January school holiday, which fell primarily in February last year, pushed a 16.4% rise in demand. Both occupancy and ADR levels continue to be pressured by supply growth, which rose to 9.3% for the month. As STR reported last week, Saudi Arabia's hotel development pipeline represents 76% of the existing room supply in the country. However, STR analysts stress the importance of considering the long-term investments being made in tourism and hospitality as part of Vision 2030.

Key January 2018 Takeaways:

• Morocco performance driven by FIA Formula E Championship race and Marrakech Marathon.
• Nigeria's occupancy rises even with security concerns in the country.
• Saudi Arabia demand increase driven by school holiday.