BENGALURU: InterContinental Hotels Group Plc on Friday posted a better-than-expected rise in first-quarter global room revenue on strong demand in China, and said it was confident in the outlook for the year ahead.
Revenue per available room (RevPAR), a key industry measure, rose 3.5 percent in the three months to March 31, above Morgan Stanley’s estimate of 2.5 percent. This compares with a 2.7 percent growth reported a year earlier.
Strong corporate demand and higher occupancies owing to the Chinese New Year lifted RevPAR growth in its Greater China region to 11 percent in the quarter, with 10 percent growth in mainland China.
In the United States, the largest market for the company in terms of room numbers, RevPAR was up 2.2 percent, which compared with a rise of 1.9 percent a year ago.
The group is expanding its luxury offering and focusing on business customers to help it weather rising competition from online rental marketplaces.
IHG signed an agreement on Thursday to rebrand and operate a portfolio of 13 upmarket hotels in Britain.
The hotelier, which runs over 5,000 hotels under brands such as Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and InterContinental, said the weakening of the US dollar against many major currencies increased group RevPAR to 6.5 percent in the quarter.
Continental Europe RevPAR was up 6 percent in the first quarter, helped by “continued recovery in terror impacted markets,” the company said.
Hotelier IHG room revenue rises on strong demand in China
Hotelier IHG room revenue rises on strong demand in China
Closing Bell: Saudi main market sheds 85 points to finish at 11,098
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index closed lower in the latest session, falling 85.79 points, or 0.77 percent, to finish at 11,098.06.
The MSCI Tadawul 30 Index declined 0.63 percent to close at 1,495.23, while the parallel market index Nomu dropped 0.91 percent to 23,548.56.
Market breadth was firmly negative, with 42 gainers against 218 decliners on the main market. Trading activity saw 226 million shares exchanged, with total turnover reaching SR4.5 billion ($1.19 billion).
Among the session’s gainers, Tourism Enterprise Co. rose 9.40 percent to SR15.02. SHL Finance Co. advanced 4.51 percent to SR16.00, while Almasar Alshamil for Education Co. gained 3.56 percent to SR23.88.
Dar Alarkan Real Estate Development Co. added 3.03 percent to SR19.70, and Banque Saudi Fransi climbed 2.61 percent to SR19.30.
On the losing side, Almasane Alkobra Mining Co. recorded the steepest decline, falling 6.61 percent to SR96.
Al Moammar Information Systems Co. dropped 5.14 percent to SR164.20, while National Company for Learning and Education declined 4.60 percent to SR124.30. Saudi Ceramic Co. slipped 4.14 percent to SR27.30, and Arabian Contracting Services Co. fell 4.12 percent to SR116.50.
On the announcement front, Saudi Telecom Co. announced the distribution of interim cash dividends for the fourth quarter of 2025 in line with its approved dividend policy.
The company will distribute SR2.74 billion, equivalent to SR0.55 per share, to shareholders for the quarter.
The number of shares eligible for dividends stands at approximately 4.99 billion shares. The eligibility date has been set for Feb. 23, with distribution scheduled for March 12.
The company noted that treasury shares are not entitled to dividends and that payments will be made through Riyad Bank via direct transfer to shareholders’ bank accounts. stc shares last traded at SR44.80, unchanged on the session.
Separately, National Environmental Recycling Co., known as Tadweer, reported its annual financial results for the year ended Dec. 31, 2025, posting significant growth in revenue and profit.
Revenue rose 53.5 percent year on year to SR1.24 billion, compared with SR806 million in the previous year. Net profit attributable to shareholders increased 68.4 percent to SR60.9 million, up from SR36.2 million a year earlier, driven by higher sales volumes and operational expansion.
Tadweer shares last traded at SR3.80, up 2.70 percent.
