While UAE hotels recorded the highest occupancy (83.1 per cent) for November in the region, the rate still marked a decrease of 2.5 per cent over the figures for the same month of 2013, a report said.

Egypt hotels logged 55.2 per cent occupancy, reflecting the highest increase at 35.8 per cent for the month of November, added the Middle East/Africa November 2014 results released by STR Global, a leading source of global hotel data.

The Middle East/Africa region reported mixed performance during November 2014 when reported in US dollars, according to the report.

In year-over-year comparisons, the region reported a 4.8-per cent increase in occupancy to 67.4 per cent, a 2.4-per cent decrease in average daily rate to US$174.28 and a 2.3-per cent increase in revenue per available room to $117.40.

“November 2014 year-to-date figures show the Middle East and Africa grew RevPAR (revenue per available room) by 4.7 per cent (when reported in US dollars), primarily driven by occupancy increases (+3.9 per cent). Focusing on the three sub-regions, the Middle East saw year-to-date occupancy growth; however, rate remained flat as new supply put pressure on performance”, said Elizabeth Winkle, managing director of STR Global.

“Northern Africa saw a double-digit increase in occupancy, with a marginal increase in rate, primarily driven by performance recovery in Egypt. In contrast, Southern Africa has seen declines across all key performance measurements”, Winkle continued.

“Many nations within this sub-region are major oil producers, and with recent declines in oil prices it is likely that many markets will be impacted by this in the coming months and have a knock-on effect on the other hotels in the region."

Highlights among the Middle East/Africa region’s key markets for November include:

•    Cairo, Egypt, jumped 52.3 per cent to 50.5 per cent in occupancy, reporting the largest increase in that metric. Beirut, Lebanon, followed with a 23.6-per cent increase in occupancy to 53.5 per cent.

•    Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, increased 9.2 per cent to $236.88 in ADR (average daily rate), recording the largest increase in that metric.

•    Cairo (+58.8 per cent to $53.75) and Beirut (+18.2 per cent to $75.20) achieved the largest RevPAR increases.

•    Lagos, Nigeria, experienced the largest decrease in all three key performance metrics. The market’s occupancy fell 15.1 per cent to 50.0 per cent; its ADR decreased 13.4 per cent to $227.35; and its RevPAR was down 26.5 per cent to $113.62. – TradeArabia News Service