Sydney’s hotels have been hit by lowered corporate spending, official statistics show.
Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics for the final quarter of last year reveals that demand dropped 3.2 percent across all sectors, with occupancy levels falling 4.3 percent, to 80.8 percent.
Last year Sydney city hotels recorded their strongest March and June quarters on record, despite a softening in leisure tourism as a result of the high Australian dollar, which contributed to surging outbound travel.
However, the data also shows that on average room rates held steady across all categories at AU$151.28 (US$142).
Late last year, many companies started to restrict corporate travel, a key sector for most Sydney hotels. In November, normally an important month for Sydney hotels because of corporate events and pre-Christmas conferences, occupancy fell to 85 percent, whereas it had been closer to 90 percent in the previous two years.
For further details please visit, www.abs.gov.au
Kenny Coyle
