Increased competition in the capital's hotel industry trimmed earnings for the owner of the InterContinental Abu Dhabi by 33 per cent for the second quarter.
The National Corporation for Tourism and Hotels (NCTH) yesterday said net profit in the latest quarter fell to Dh27.4 million (US$7.4m) from Dh41m in the same quarter last year."The drop in profit can be attributed to decline in revenue from the hotels division due to the decline in both occupancy and room rates," said Mohammed Mounib, the chief executive of NCTH, in a statement on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange website.
For the first half of the year, its earnings fell to Dh67.2m from Dh89.3m in the same period last year. Early last year, there was a severe shortage of hotel rooms in the capital, pushing room prices up substantially.
Since then, a number of new properties have opened, including the Fairmont Bab Al Bahr, the Holiday Inn, the Aloft Abu Dhabi and seven hotels on Yas Island. The emirate sees new high-quality hotels as part of the process of building itself up as a tourist destination.
The capital has about 17,500 hotel and hotel apartment rooms compared with about 12,500 at the same time last year, according to the Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority. Guest numbers increased by 14 per cent in May compared with the same month last year, it said.
But given the increase in hotels, that growth in guest numbers was not yet enough to shore up occupancy levels. Data from the research firm STR Global show hotel occupancy in the capital fell by 23.8 per cent to 54.9 per cent in the first six months of the year, while average room rates dropped by 29.2 per cent to $157.41.
NCTH owns the Al Ain InterContinental hotel and owns and operates the Dhafra Beach Hotel. It also has a 50 per cent stake in the National Transportation Company, which owns and operates taxis and buses. It is a partner in the Nareel Island Development Company, which is developing a residential and resort complex on Nareel Island in Abu Dhabi.
rbundhun@thenational.ae
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Engine: 3-litre twin-turbo V6
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OPTA'S PREDICTED TABLE
1. Liverpool 101 points
2. Manchester City 80
3. Leicester 67
4. Chelsea 63
5. Manchester United 61
6. Tottenham 58
7. Wolves 56
8. Arsenal 56
9. Sheffield United 55
10. Everton 50
11. Burnley 49
12. Crystal Palace 49
13. Newcastle 46
14. Southampton 44
15. West Ham 39
16. Brighton 37
17. Watford 36
18. Bournemouth 36
19. Aston Villa 32
20. Norwich City 29
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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Turkish Ladies
Various artists, Sony Music Turkey
Graduated from the American University of Sharjah
She is the eldest of three brothers and two sisters
Has helped solve 15 cases of electric shocks
Enjoys travelling, reading and horse riding
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Mamo Year it started: 2019 Founders: Imad Gharazeddine, Asim Janjua Based: Dubai, UAE Number of employees: 28 Sector: Financial services Investment: $9.5m Funding stage: Pre-Series A Investors: Global Ventures, GFC, 4DX Ventures, AlRajhi Partners, Olive Tree Capital, and prominent Silicon Valley investors. The schedule
December 5 - 23: Shooting competition, Al Dhafra Shooting Club
December 9 - 24: Handicrafts competition, from 4pm until 10pm, Heritage Souq
December 11 - 20: Dates competition, from 4pm
December 12 - 20: Sour milk competition
December 13: Falcon beauty competition
December 14 and 20: Saluki races
December 15: Arabian horse races, from 4pm
December 16 - 19: Falconry competition
December 18: Camel milk competition, from 7.30 - 9.30 am
December 20 and 21: Sheep beauty competition, from 10am
December 22: The best herd of 30 camels
Building boom turning to bust as Turkey's economy slows
Deep in a provincial region of northwestern Turkey, it looks like a mirage - hundreds of luxury houses built in neat rows, their pointed towers somewhere between French chateau and Disney castle.
Meant to provide luxurious accommodations for foreign buyers, the houses are however standing empty in what is anything but a fairytale for their investors.
The ambitious development has been hit by regional turmoil as well as the slump in the Turkish construction industry - a key sector - as the country's economy heads towards what could be a hard landing in an intensifying downturn.
After a long period of solid growth, Turkey's economy contracted 1.1 per cent in the third quarter, and many economists expect it will enter into recession this year.
The country has been hit by high inflation and a currency crisis in August. The lira lost 28 per cent of its value against the dollar in 2018 and markets are still unconvinced by the readiness of the government under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to tackle underlying economic issues.
The villas close to the town centre of Mudurnu in the Bolu region are intended to resemble European architecture and are part of the Sarot Group's Burj Al Babas project.
But the development of 732 villas and a shopping centre - which began in 2014 - is now in limbo as Sarot Group has sought bankruptcy protection.
It is one of hundreds of Turkish companies that have done so as they seek cover from creditors and to restructure their debts.
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How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
Married Malala
Malala Yousafzai is enjoying married life, her father said.
The 24-year-old married Pakistan cricket executive Asser Malik last year in a small ceremony in the UK.
Ziauddin Yousafzai told The National his daughter was ‘very happy’ with her husband.
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The Beach Bum
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Two stars
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TOURNAMENT INFO
Fixtures
Sunday January 5 - Oman v UAE
Monday January 6 - UAE v Namibia
Wednesday January 8 - Oman v Namibia
Thursday January 9 - Oman v UAE
Saturday January 11 - UAE v Namibia
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Waheed Ahmed, Zawar Farid, Darius D’Silva, Karthik Meiyappan, Jonathan Figy, Vriitya Aravind, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Chirag Suri
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The UAE's journey to space