M&C Hotels reports a fall in revpar for first six weeks of 2013

Millennium & Copthorne Hotels (M&C) said strong competition has reduced revenue per room in the first six weeks of 2013, as it reported a 15% fall in annual profits for 2012.

The company said underlying pretax profit for the year was down to £157.7m from £184.7m a year ago when it was boosted by the sale of land in Kuala Lumpur.

M&C, which operates brands including Millennium, Grand Millennium, Copthorne and Kingsgate, said annual growth in global revenue per available room (revpar) was up 3.4% on higher room rates.

Like-for-like group RevPAR had fallen 1.1% in the first six weeks of the new year compared to a 3.4% increase in the same period a year ago. Revpar in London was down 9.6% for this period.

Commenting on the results M&C chairman Kwek Leng Beng said: "The group overcame more challenging conditions in some markets during the second half of 2012 to deliver an overall increase in like-for-like revenues and profits for the year. This illustrates the earnings benefit of a balanced portfolio of assets in good locations, as well as our ability to respond effectively to changes in the economic climate, whilst continuing to control costs, invest in our assets and improve our attractiveness to customers."

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