The boss of expanding AccorHotels has signalled further acquisitions on the back of a 9.5% rise in like-for-like first quarter revenues to €633 million.
The result came despite a “substantial appreciation” of the euro against all other currencies, including 15% against the US dollar, leading to a €63 million negative impact in the three months.
The French hospitality giant developed a record 61 hotels in the period and almost 10,000 rooms. It has a pipeline of 870 hotels and 153,000 rooms.
Revenue per available room (revpar) was broadly stable in the UK year-on-year. An increase in revpar in the in regions of 2.1% offset a 1.9% decline in activity in London. However, the capital continues to record one of the best occupancy rates in Europe at 76%.
The company confirmed the sale of a majority 55% stake in its real estate arm AccorInvest for €4.4 billion, first announced in February.
AccorHotels Chairman and CEO Sébastien Bazin said: “In line with the good trends of 2017, business remained strong in the first quarter in the vast majority of regions.
“Europe and Asia, our two key markets, continue to benefit from a buoyant environment. Our development continues at a sustained pace.
“At the same time, our new businesses are taking shape and gradually gaining momentum.
“To complement this, the group is pursuing its strategy of growth and consolidation of its eco-system through targeted acquisitions.
“Since the beginning of the year, this has resulted in Gekko, Mantis
and ResDiary joining the world of AccorHotels.
“In short, the group is continuing its fast-paced transformation to build an increasingly comprehensive offering to serve its customers.”