InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG)’s revPAR climbed 5.9% year-on-year in Q1 2015, driven by a 3.4% rise in average room rates.

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG)experienced a global rise in revPAR(revenue per available room) in the first quarter of 2015.

The company’s revPAR climbed 5.9% year-on-year in Q1 2015, driven by a 3.4% rise in average room rates. IHG’s hotels in Asia Pacific and the Americas (both +6.2%) saw the strongest revPAR gains, followed by Europe (+5.8%).

Greater China experienced a 2.5% rise in revPAR during the quarter, but this result was impacted by declines in Macau and Hong Kong. RevPAR in mainland China jumped 6.3%, including an 11.2% rise in Shanghai.

“We have made a strong start to the year, executing against our winning strategy to deliver revPAR growth of 5.9%,” said Richard Solomons, chief executive of IHG. “We achieved our highest first quarter for hotel signings in seven years, and openings in five years, demonstrating the continued momentum behind both our established and new brands.”

IHG’s global inventory increased 4.9% in Q1 2015, to 723,000 rooms, while the company’s pipeline now stands at 201,000 rooms following the signing of new hotels comprising 14,000 rooms – IHG’s highest number of Q1 signings in seven years.

“With our current trading performance and the strong momentum behind our brands we remain confident that our winning strategy will continue to deliver sustainable high quality growth,” Solomons added.