LONDON – The Middle East/Africa region reported mostly positive performance results in February 2012 when reported in U.S. dollars, according to data compiled by STR Global.

In February 2012, the region"s occupancy jumped 13.3 percent to 62.6 percent, its average daily rate decreased 6.8 percent to US$172.01 and its revenue per available room was up 5.6 percent increase to US$107.74.

"One year on from the Arab Spring, we are seeing positive RevPAR growth on lower base values for Northern Africa, as can be seen in Cairo, which reported 96 percent RevPAR recovery to EGP266", said Elizabeth Randall, managing director of STR Global. "We saw occupancy pick up in markets which saw various levels of political protest last year, such as Amman, Beirut and Cairo, whilst performance continued to be impacted in Manama".

Highlights among the region"s key markets for February 2012 include (year-over-year comparisons, all currency in U.S. dollars):

  • Cairo, Egypt, jumped 178.4 percent in occupancy to 40.7 percent, achieving the largest increase in that metric, followed by Beirut, Lebanon (+58.9 percent to 58.2 percent), and Amman, Jordan (+49.1 percent to 79.1 percent).
  • Manama, Bahrain, fell 24.3 percent in occupancy to 44.8 percent, posting the largest decrease in that metric, followed by Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, with a 12.2-percent decrease to 64.4 percent.
  • Beirut rose 7.7 percent in ADR to US$193.96, reporting the largest increase in that metric, followed by Dubai, UAE, with a 5.0-percent increase to US$252.98.
  • Cairo (-31.3 percent to US$108.25) and Abu Dhabi (-20.1 percent to US$178.20), posted the largest ADR decreases for the month.
  • Four markets experienced RevPAR increases of more than 20 percent: Cairo (+91.4 percent to US$44.01); Beirut (+71.0 percent to US$112.96); Amman (+45.7 percent to US$112.39); and Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (+22.9 percent to US$164.32).
  • Manama fell 31.6 percent in RevPAR to US$92.11, reporting the largest decrease in that metric, followed by Abu Dhabi with a 29.9-percent decrease to US$114.72.

Performances of key countries in February 2012 (all monetary units in local currency):

Country Occupancy % change ADR % change RevPAR % change
Egypt 42.9% +172.6% EGP417.39 -19.7% EGP179.09 +119.0%
Saudi Arabia 68.4% +25.6% SAR688.71 -4.8% SAR471.19 +19.6%
South Africa 62.6% +8.0% ZAR935.60 +4.2% ZAR585.51 +12.5%
United Arab Emirates 79.8% -2.4% AED821.68 -1.0% AED655.65 -3.4%

*percentages are increases/decreases for February 2012 vs. February 2011

Jeff Higley (STR)
VP, Digital Media & Communications
+1 (615) 824-8664 ext. 3318
STR Global