Most regions have recovered from the effects of the global recession. Several markets, including Europe and the Middle East, are rebounding quickly.

Elizabeth Winkle, managing director of STR Global, presented a whirlwind tour as she underlined the state of the hotel industry across the globe.

Speaking during the 6th annual Hotel Data Conference hosted by STR and Hotel News Now, Winkle said all parts of the globe have not seen the same kind of growth as the United States hotel industry has experienced in recent years.

“Since 2008, we’ve seen numbers improve, but the question is are they recovery figures trying to get back to where we were or are we actually seeing growth like it is in the U.S.?” she said.

Following are five key data points from the presentation outlining the state of the global hotel business:

1. From dire straits to turning tides

In 2009, the year after the start of the global recession, the hotel business in 88% of 112 countries performed below 2008 levels. During 2009, a year which Winkle labeled “dire straits,” 367,000 rooms were added to the global inventory, including 176,000 in the Americas region.

By 2013, which Winkle dubbed “turning tides,” hotels in 39% of countries were still performing below pre-recession levels. During that year, 237,000 additional rooms were added globally, with 76,000 in the Americas and 111,000 in Asia/Pacific.

2. Europe improves

Through June, Europe has seen solid improvement with a 4.6% increase in revenue per available room (in euro terms) split nearly evenly between growth in occupancy (+2.1%) and average daily rate (+2.4%).

“This presents a very stable and positive picture, particularly coming off last year’s meager and disappointing rate results,” Winkle said, adding the region had no occupancy growth in 2013.

Winkle said Europe is not as strong or stable economically as the U.S., with austerity plans in place in several countries, overall unemployment at approximately 7.2% and youth unemployment in excess of 50% in some countries.

While hotels in southern Europe have suffered in recent years, business has started to bounce back, with year-to-date increases in occupancy (+3.7%), ADR (+3.8%) and RevPAR (+7.6%)—all in euro terms.

3. Mixed performance in Middle East/Africa

While the Middle East and Africa has posted an overall year-to-date increase in RevPAR of 6.4% when measured in U.S. dollars constant currency, the northern Africa sub-region has seen a 5.2% decline in RevPAR mostly due to a 7% fall in occupancy.

Winkle said northern Africa has not fully recovered from the aftermath of the Arab Spring political turmoil in 2010 and 2011, with markets such as Cairo, Egypt, reporting occupancies as low as 10% to 15%.

Winkle said the Middle East is experiencing strong summer demand this year.

“The summer months were traditionally the low season, with more travel usually in the winter, fall and spring,” she said. “Now some destinations, such as Oman, Dubai and Abu Dhabi, have become year-round destinations.”

From a pipeline perspective, the upper end of the market is dominating new development. According to Winkle, one-third of the pipeline in the Middle East is in the luxury (12%) and upper-upscale (21%) segments.

4. Moderate performance in Asia/Pacific

Following a strong performance in 2012, the Asia/Pacific region slipped in 2013 with a 0.2% decrease in RevPAR when measured in U.S. dollars on a constant currency basis. The industry has improved this year with RevPAR up 1.3% through June.

“We’re seeing strong performance in Southeast Asia, moderate performance in China and strong performance in the Pacific, particularly Australia and New Zealand.

“Bangkok and the rest of Thailand performance is driving down Southeast Asia, but we’re seeing strong performance in Malaysia and Indonesia, particularly in Bali and Jakarta,” Winkle said.

5. Accelerating pipeline

More than half of the global pipeline is in the three highest-rated segments, with upscale leading at 25% of the total. Sixteen percent of pipeline rooms are in the upper-upscale segment, and 10% are in the luxury tier.

The Middle East, in particular, is seeing acceleration in the pipeline, Winkle said.  “If every room in the Middle East pipeline opens in the next three years, the region will see a 42% increase in the number of rooms,” she said.

Three-year pipeline figures are lower in other global regions: Central and South America, up 16%; Asia/Pacific, up 15%; Africa, up 8%; North America, up 7%; and Europe, up 3%.

Winkle said the luxury segment in China remains strong with 55,000 luxury rooms under development in the country.