Overall, IHG saw global revenue per available room grow 3.1%, driven predominantly by rate growth of 2%, said Singer, the CFO and director of IHG. In the Greater China region, RevPAR grew 1.8%, showing an improved trend from the fourth quarter of last year.

　　Buckinghamshire, U.K.— Continued economic slowdown in China and a shift in leadership has impacted hotel performance for InterContinental Hotels Group portfolio, but during the first quarter trading call Thomas D. Singer said he is optimistic about IHG’s future in the region.

　　Overall, the company saw global revenue per available room grow 3.1%, driven predominantly by rate growth of 2%, said Singer, the CFO and director of IHG. In the Greater China region, RevPAR grew 1.8%, showing an improved trend from the fourth quarter of last year.

　　“Even so, trading in the region does continue to be impacted by a number of factors, including slower economic growth, political leadership change and tightened government spending,” Singer said. “We do hope to see a return to more normal conditions as the year progresses and a new leadership becomes established.”

　　Positive growth will come from strong hotel development activity in the region, he said. IHG signed more than 4,000 rooms in China in the quarter—up more than 50% year-on-year—which included the 16th Hualaxe hotel.

　　“Despite the medium-term economic uncertainties in many countries, the travel industry continues to benefit from good long-term sustainable growth trends,” Singer added.

　　China’s ‘noisy’ quarter

　　A leadership change in China, an economic slowdown and a territorial dispute with Japan all contributed to a noisy quarter in the region, Singer said.

　　April also was complicated by concerns around H9N7 bird flu and an earthquake.

　　Singer, however, said IHG remains “very optimistic about the prospects for our China business.”

　　“We actually think we significantly outperformed the market, which we think was down probably around 4%. We"ve also been very encouraged by the continuing good pace of signings in China,” he said.

　　Long-term drivers of demand remain intact cultivating IHG’s optimism about its China hotels, he said, adding that once leaders settle into their new roles, normal business activity will resume over the next few quarters.

　　Optimistic outlook

　　The broader picture of demand and supply in China offer “tremendous prospects,” for IHG, Singer said. “You will get pockets, perhaps, of oversupply. But as the market develops, you would expect those to be absorbed in the normal course.”

　　China is a big economy, Singer said, and IHG is a big—highly profitable—business there.

　　When asked about IHG’s RevPAR underperformance relative to Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Singer said IHG has been in China longer than Starwood and has a greater proportion of hotels still going through the early part of their ramp-up, he said.

　　“So, not surprisingly, that helps their RevPAR statistics,” as well as Starwood’s focus on resorts, which did particularly well during the first quarter when there were a number of public holidays in China.

　　Singer said IHG has a considerable pipeline to open in the next few years “and we"re investing now in order to try and grow that business over time,” he said.

　　“We continue to think (China) will be a terrific market for IHG going forward, and I"m very encouraged by our relative outperformance through the last quarter,” he said, “which I think is just a testament to the strength of our brands in the market and the great job our management team are doing there.”