Revenues, RevPAR fall for Holiday Inn owner

By Leon Stafford

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

The travel slump continues to affect earnings at InterContinental Hotels Group, operator of such well-known lodging brands as Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza and Staybridge Suites.

The London-based hotelier, whose Americas headquarters is in Atlanta, reported Tuesday a 26 percent decline in third-quarter profit and a 13.5 percent drop in revenue per available room (RevPAR), the gauge the industry uses to determine its health.

In the Americas, which makes up about 70 percent of the company's portfolio, RevPAR was down 15.7 percent. Revenue declined about 19 percent to $206 million.

Andrew Cosslett, chief executive of IHG PLC, said, "The trading environment remains challenging. We see signs of occupancy stabilizing, but rate is still under considerable pressure across the board."

He also said adding new hotels has been impacted by the lack of bank financing for new projects.