The Middle East/Africa region suffered declines in all three key measurements in year-over-year results when reported in U.S. dollars for June 2009, according to data compiled by STR Global.

The region’s occupancy dropped 11.7 percent to 59.6 percent; average daily rate decreased 2.8 percent to US$138.23; and revenue per available room decreased 14.2 percent to US$82.38.

“The Middle East/Africa region experienced a 14.2-percent RevPAR drop in June, the lowest decrease of all regions, followed by the Americas, Asia/Pacific and then Europe”, said James Chappell, managing director of STR Global. “Different pictures emerge when looking at the individual markets. Amman, Beirut and Cape Town reported double-digit RevPAR increases for June in local currency, which were mainly driven by rate increases. South Africa has started to benefit from the Confederation Cup and the build up for the FIFA World Cup next year”.

Highlights from key markets in the Middle East/Africa region (percentages are June 2009 vs. June 2008):

  • Cape Town, South Africa, reported the largest occupancy increase, up 3.3 percent to 51.1 percent, followed by Beirut, Lebanon, with a 2.0-percent increase to 55.7 percent.
  • Muscat, Oman, dropped 31.3 percent in occupancy to 40.4 percent, posting the largest decrease in that metric. Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, also reported a decrease of more than 20 percent, falling 20.3 percent to 63.5 percent.
  • Four markets experienced double-digit ADR increases: Beirut (+28.3 percent to US$210.24); Johannesburg/Pretoria, South Africa (+18.0 percent to US$120.57); Amman, Jordan (+17.6 percent to US$149.72); and Cape Town (+10.6 percent to US$111.61).
  • Istanbul, Turkey, reported the largest ADR decrease, down 24.3 percent to US$211.30, followed by Dubai, United Arab Emirates, with a 22.4-percent decrease to US$166.13.
  • Beirut posted the largest RevPAR increase, jumping 30.9 percent to US$117.20. Amman (+15.6 percent to US$96.96) and Cape Town (+14.2 percent to US$57.08) also reported double-digit RevPAR increases.
  • Three markets experienced RevPAR declines of more than 25 percent: Dubai (-33.9 percent to US$107.24); Istanbul (-33.1 percent to US$145.83); and Muscat (-26.4 percent to US$77.36).
Performances of key countries in June (all monetary units in local currency):
Country Occupancy % change ADR % change RevPAR % change
Egypt 57.0% -17.1% EGP402.66 +6.2% EGP229.65 -12.0%
Saudi Arabia 64.8% -7.9% SAR571.62 -2.4% SAR370.37 -10.2%
South Africa 58.6% -8.5% ZAR845.18 +15.6% ZAR495.44 +5.8%
United Arab Emirates 64.7% -13.0% AED637.50 -16.6% AED412.50 -27.4%

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Konstanze Auernheimer (STR Global)
Director of Marketing
+44 (0)207 922 1961
STR Global