Singapore – The Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP) UPDATE in Singapore drew more than 250 mostly optimistic participants to the Pan Pacific Hotel, 4-5 May 2011. HICAP UPDATE, which is a lead-up to HICAP in Hong Kong this October, is organized by BHN, Horwath HTL and Stiles Capital Events.

Richard Duncan, Chief Economist of Blackhorse Asset Management, provided an overview of the global economy and predictions on the economic outlook of the region.  In looking at the economy, Duncan expressed his concerns about the pace of recovery.  According to Duncan, growth in the US economy is expected to weaken in the second half of the year with the ending of the second quantity easing (QE2) by central banks. This, said Duncan, will have an impact on the Chinese economy as the latter is driven by trade surplus with the US.

On a more positive note, Jonas Ogren, Area Director of STR Global Asia, said that Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR) of hotels in Asia Pacific rose by 21.3% in 2010, after a drastic drop of 19.4% in 2009. Growth was particularly strong in key markets such as Shanghai, Hong Kong, Beijing, Singapore and Phuket. As of March year-to-date 2011, average room rates (ARR) have increased year-on-year (YOY) across most markets. Occupancy and ARR in Tokyo however dropped by about 10 percent YOY in the wake of the Japan disaster. Ogren added that ARR in markets such as Singapore and Hong Kong are expected to remain high. Over 346,000 new rooms are in the pipeline for Asia Pacific in the next 5 years, with 56 percent of the total located in China, 21 percent in India, 5 percent in Thailand and 4 percent in Indonesia and Vietnam respectively.

According to JLLH, 100 percent of all major hotel investments in Asia in 2010 were conducted by Asian investors, which signaled a lack of foreign capital entering the region. Investor cap rates (yield expectations) also dropped to about 7 to 8 percent in the region in 2010. With the crisis in Japan, there is a reported increase in deal flow in the country which has garnered much interest. Other markets that have been attractive for hotel investments are Taiwan, Thailand, China, Hong Kong and Indonesia.

HICAP in Hong Kong will be held 12-14 October 2011, at the InterContinental Hong Kong.  Registration is open.  Date and location for the next HICAP UPDATE will be released soon at www.HICAPconference.com .

About HICAP
The HICAP family of events are Asia’s largest and longest running hotel investment events, making them the most important gatherings of hotel developers, investors, lenders, operators, and other industry executives for information exchange, trend spotting, and deal making.

About BHN
BHN is the worldwide leader in developing and organizing conferences for the hotel and tourism investment community.  With more than two decades of experience, over 80 events completed or in production to-date, and more than 60,000 international delegates, BHN conferences have become “must attend” events for industry leaders who come together to network, conduct business and to learn about the latest trends.  BHN events include: the Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS) in Los Angeles; the ALIS Summer Update in Dallas in 2011; the Caribbean Hotel & Resort Investment Summit (CHRIS) in Miami; the Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP) in Hong Kong; HICAP UPDATE in Singapore; HICAP JAPAN in Tokyo in 2012; the Hotel Investment Forum India (HIFI) in Mumbai, the new Hotel Opportunities Latin America (HOLA) conference in Miami; and the new Hotel Investment Conference Europe (Hot.E) in London.  The BHN website at www.Burba.com  is the gateway for information about the conferences BHN produces, as well as a direct link to important players in the hospitality investment world.

About Horwath HTL
Horwath HTL (Hotels Tourism and Leisure) is one of the world’s pre-eminent consulting specialists in the hotel, tourism and leisure industries, providing unequalled experience and expertise for client projects around the world through a combination of detailed local knowledge and international understanding. Horwath HTL is currently the world’s largest consulting organization specialized in hospitality, with 50 offices in 39 countries. Horwath HTL is a member of Crowe Horwath International, a professional association of accounting and management consulting firms founded in New York in 1915. Crowe Horwath International is currently ranked among the top ten international professional service groups with offices in close to 586 cities in 108 countries.

About SCE
Stiles Capital Events (SCE) has provided event management, communications and marketing in the publishing, entertainment and hospitality industries since 1990. The SCE team has been associated with the development and organization of the Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP) since its inception and the subsequent launches of HICAP Update Japan and HICAP Update Southeast Asia. SCE is based in the San Francisco Bay Area.