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Covid restrictions continue to fall like dominoes . Hong Kong came through with their plan to end their hotel quarantine policy, putting it into effect before October Golden Week, beginning today. Macau’s hotel occupancy rate fell to just 33.3% in August, down -1.1 percentage points year over year. DBS said Singapore’s hospitality industry is on track for a “spectacular” second half of 2022.

The Fed Sell Off continues in the financial markets as the DJIA fell another 486 points on Friday, Nasdaq was down 199, the S&P 500 fell 65 points and the 10-year treasury yield was down .01 to 3.70%. In New York City, the Skift (parent company of this publication) conference generated a lot of headlines, the biggest one being Barry Diller of IAC once again trashing working from home. Lodging stocks are hitting new lows, while RevPAR continues to impress.

The 10-year treasury yield was up .20 today to 3.71%. Do we need to tell you what happened to stocks? The DJIA was down 107, Nasdaq was down 153, the S&P 500 was down 32. Truist reported on meetings they held with the management of Wyndham Hotels . Demand trends remain favorable and while management is closely monitoring bookings, length of stay, cancellation rates and such, they see no immediate cause for concern. As recent demand for hotel rooms breaks records and prices skyrocket, hotel investors are taking notice as 80% of them plan on buying throughout the remainder of 2022 and into 2023 .

STR reported China hotel RevPAR the week ended September 17   fell -11.5% year over year. When compared with the same week in 2019, China hotel RevPAR was down -40.1% Despite STR reporting week after week for the past several months that China hotel RevPAR has plunged again, Trip.com said hotel reservations in China surpassed pre-pandemic levels since late June . Hyatt Hotels Corporation announced the opening of Hyatt Place Bharuch . This is the second Hyatt Place hotel in Gujarat and the sixth Hyatt Place hotel in in India.

Equity investors were once again willing to give the Federal Reserve Board the benefit of the doubt on the 0.75% rate hike today but then Fed Chief Powell held a press conference and it got ugly pretty quickly. STR reported US lodging data for the week ended 9/17. US hotel RevPAR was up 30.6% year over year. RevPAR was up 12.7% versus the same week in 2019. A group of hotel franchisees has filed a lawsuit against IHG Hotels and Resorts , claiming a cyber attack on its booking system earlier this month cost them millions of dollars in lost revenue, according to various news sources.

The DJIA  fell another 313 points, Nasdaq was down 110, the S&P 500 was down 44 points and if you thought mortgages were high before, the 10-year treasury yield was up another .08 to 3.57%. Playa Hotels & Resorts announced its board of directors reauthorized the repurchase of up to $100 million of the company’s outstanding shares. According to Hodges Ward Elliott's Q2 report , the New York City hospitality sector continues its recovery as travel surges and hotels reopen.

Marriott International  announced it expects to open  14 additional luxury properties   in Asia Pacific by the end of 2023 . Marriott currently operates 156 luxury properties in the region. Construction of the long-awaited resort at  Kalgoorlie Golf Course  in the city of  Kalgoorlie-Boulder  in  Australia  has finally begun. PT Platnet Properindo Jaya Tbk will initiate the operation of Citi Hub Hotel, Kelapa Gading in Indonesia in 2023.

The DJIA  rose 197 points, Nasdaq was up 87, the S&P 500 rose 27 points and the 10-year treasury yield was up .04 to 3.49%. Hersha Hospitality is the latest lodging REIT to announce they have reinstated their quarterly cash dividend on the common shares. According to CBRE , Canadian hotels will return to pre-pandemic revenues next year, two years ahead of its previous forecast.

The Wall Street Journal published an article on how  Asia Pacific may have reopened to tourism, but the recovery is slow . Oyo Hotels filed new financial documents with the Securities and Exchange Board of India. Japan plans to resume visa-free air tickets in October and  Taiwan plans to open its borders from mid-to-late October.

The  DJIA  fell 139 points on Friday while  Nasdaq  was down 104, the  S&P 500  fell 28 points and the  10-year treasury yield  was down .01 to 3.45%. Citigroup cut its rating on IHG Hotels & Resorts to Sell from Neutral. Citi believes the incomplete recovery in corporate travel will weigh on IHG’s RevPAR. Berenberg , on the other hand, sees hotels as the top travel play . The brokerage firm says concerns about the hotel industry are overblown and the outlook for RevPAR for 2023 and 2024 will strengthen further.

STR  said  Melbourne, Australia’s hotel performance  in August fell from the previous month. Preliminary August 2022 data shows occupancy at 59%, ADR at A$207.05 and RevPAR at A$122.10. Hilton said their Hilton Garden Inn brand is poised to triple its portfolio in Greater China and offer travelers an expanded network of 135 properties in the coming years. Louvre Hotels Group , an affiliate of Jin Jiang International , the second largest hotel group in the world, has begun construction of its five hundredth project in China.

STR reported China hotel RevPAR results for the week ended September 10. RevPAR was down -12.3% year over year while down -29.3% when compared with a comparable week in 2019. Hong Kong hotels have been told to set aside just eight or 3% of their rooms, whichever is lower, to house travelers who test positive for Covid, raising the risk of insufficient space for infected people if the easing of travel curbs come into effect. Asset World Public Company Limited said they are strengthening their long term partnership with Marriott International with an agreement to launch a new Ritz-Carlton hotel in Bangkok’s heritage riverside district.