DORCHESTER HOTEL GROUP BOOKS IN AT THE TOP

DORCHESTER Group, the deluxe hotel chain which owns the iconic Dorchester hotel on London’s Park Lane, has bucked the economic downturn by posting a 12 per cent increase in revenues to £259.4 million in 2008.
The group is owned by the oil-rich state of Brunei which took a £20 million dividend from the business, up from just £1 million in 2007 according to the latest accounts filed with Companies House.

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http://www.express.co.uk/money/view/116538/Dorchester-hotel-group-books-in-at-the-top-

Jurys raises £60m worth of funding for expansion plans

Hotels chain Jurys Inn has said it has secured £60 million in funding to support further growth in the UK.
The mid-market operator, which has 21 hotels in the UK and seven in Ireland, attracted £15m each from major shareholders — the Oman Investment Fund and investment business Quinlan Private — with the remainder in debt.

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http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/business/business-news/jurys-raises-pound60m-worth-of-funding-for-expansion-plans-14433468.html

UK Hotel bankruptcies soaring on recession

The full impact the recession has had on the UK's hotel industry was laid bare today by new figures showing that sector insolvencies soared 120% since last June.
Research by administrators PricewaterhouseCoopers also showed that 90 hotels have already failed in the first half this year, compared with 36 in the first six months of last year, a rise of 150%.

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http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard-business/article-23724259-details/article.do?ito=newsnow&

Hotels price war rattles chains

For Miles Cheetham the price war among Britain’s hotel chains has been a godsend. “Sometimes it makes a difference whether I should do a trip or kill it. Or whether I should go on my own or two of us should go,” said the director at The Key Revolution, a technology start-up.
To date, Cheetham has not managed to snag any of the ultra-cheap deals – £60 is his usual going rate – but he was happy when, on a recent business trip to Dublin, he secured a room for €80 overlooking Trinity Square that would normally cost €300 (£260).

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http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/leisure/article6727576.ece

Macau’s New Leader Raises Prospect of Casino Revival

July 27 (Bloomberg) -- Macau’s new leader Fernando Chui says China will help the casino hub develop, which may boost operators including Las Vegas Sands Corp. and Wynn Resorts Ltd. that were hurt last year by mainland travel restrictions.

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http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601205&sid=a0znh1yrbw7g

Whitbread to dispose of four top pubs

Whitbread has placed four high-quality pubs on the market as part of plans to restructure its estate.
The company, which owns the Premier Inns, Brewers Fayre and Beefeater brands, is disposing of the pubs as part of plans to focus on its properties that offer hotel accommodation.

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http://www.thepublican.com/story.asp?sectioncode=7&storycode=64633&c=1

Hard Rock hotel expands as Vegas rates stay down

LAS VEGAS -- As a 490-room tower opens at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino just east of the Las Vegas Strip this week, hotel operators citywide are struggling to fill existing rooms and staggering at the prospect of 10,000 more coming online this year and next.
"It's (the) wrong place, wrong time," said Randy Fine, a former Harrah's Entertainment Inc. vice president and the founder of Fine Point Group, a casino marketing and consulting firm based here. "They want to turn a boutique property into a mega-resort. This is probably not the time to be doing that."

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http://www.miamiherald.com/business/breaking-news/story/1158477.html

Chains, franchisees square off over discounted menu items

(July 27, 2009) The recession-driven rush to grease sales with promotions and value deals is leading to mounting frictions between franchisors and franchisees.
Brands such as Burger King, McDonald’s, Quiznos, Subway, Popeyes and KFC all have recently found themselves working to restore the delicate balance between the franchisor’s need to drive traffic and the franchisee’s need to protect margins.

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http://www.nrn.com/article.aspx?id=370304

Starwood Hotels & Resorts - HOT

We maintain our Sell rating on shares of Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide (NYSE: HOT - News). The shares have climbed significantly since bottoming out in early March.
Industry fundamentals have continued to deteriorate, with year-to-date weekly revenue per available room, or RevPAR, down nearly 20% versus the year-ago period

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http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Starwood-Hotels-Resorts-zacks-1312077355.html?x=0