Hospitality markets across Mena witnessed a negative performance in 2016 compared to 2015, a new report has revealed.

According to the EY Middle East Hotel Benchmark Survey Report, the majority of markets experienced a drop in RevPAR due to a slower global economy, making 2016 a challenging year for the hospitality industry.

Manama’s hospitality market saw a 1 per cent point increase in occupancy from 2015 with an average occupancy of 50 per cent for 2016. However, average room rates dropped by 4.7 per cent from $212 in 2015 to $202 in 2016, leading to an overall average room yield of $101, a 3.6 per cent drop from $105 in 2015.

The report provides a monthly and year-to-date performance overview of leading hotels in the Middle East. The hotel set includes international branded and operated properties across the five-star and four-star segments.
 
Yousef Wahbah, MENA Head of Transaction Real Estate at EY, said: “The hospitality market was greatly affected by the drop in oil prices over 2015 and 2016 forcing many hotels to lower their room rates whilst also suffering from lower occupancy. However, some cities, such as Cairo and Ras Al Khaimah, managed to increase both occupancy and room rates for overall higher revenues per room.”

Top MENA hospitality performers

During 2016, the Dubai market registered the highest RevPAR of $200, followed by Jeddah, which registered a RevPAR of $196. Dubai also had the highest occupancy rate in 2016 at 80 per cent while Ras Al Khaimah achieved the second highest occupancy at 72.1 per cent. The highest room rates of 2016 were recorded in Saudi Arabia, with an average daily rate of $287 in Makkah and Jeddah averaging at $277. Cairo’s hospitality market experienced a growth across all KPIs in 2016, resulting in the highest increase in room yield compared to 2015 and a RevPAR of 62.7 per cent, due to continued political stability in the country.

“The hospitality market across Mena in 2017 is expected to have a slow performance as the economy slowly adjusts to new trade agreements and currency fluctuations. It can be predicted that some markets may benefit from key annual events such as the Hajj pilgrimage, shopping festivals, and global forums, but the overall sentiment is that it will be another challenging year for the hotel industry,” added Yousef. - TradeArabia News Service