The hotel sector continues to benefit from the leisure travel boom, even as the rising cost of living erodes consumer purchasing power and fears of recession resurface in Europe.
In a statement the operator of brands including Ibis and Novotel said hotel demand remained strong between July and September, with revenue per available room (RevPAR), a key industry gauge of performance, jumping by 15% compared with the same period in 2022.
That's above the average estimate of 13% in a company-compiled consensus.
Accor also said third-quarter revenue reached 1.29 billion euros, in line with expectations.
The group, which operates across more than 110 countries, said it sees no risk of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict having a major impact on its activities, citing its limited presence in the region.
Plane ticket purchases to Egypt, Jordan and Lebanon have plummeted and flight cancellations jumped since Palestinian militant group Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, according to travel analysis firm ForwardKeys.
"Accor has very little exposure to Israel, we have four hotels, three in Jerusalem and one in Tel Aviv ... We are seeing a very low cancellation rate, which is not significant at group level," Chief Executive officer Martine Gerow said on a call with journalists.
The group now expects core earnings (EBITDA) of between 955 million euros ($1 billion) and 985 million for 2023, up from a previous forecast of between 930 million and 970 million which was already upgraded in July.
Accor also raised its forecast for growth in RevPAR in 2023 and now expects it to slightly exceed 20%. That was versus a previous estimate at the top end of a 15-20% range.
($1 = 0.9498 euros)
(Reporting by Diana Mandiá; Editing by Susan Fenton and David Holmes)
By Diana Mandia
