Peninsula owner sinks into the red

Staff reporter

The Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels (0045), the operator of Peninsula Hotels, swung to a net loss of HK$943 million last year, compared with a profit of HK$146 million in 2023, due to renovation works at The Peninsula New York, higher depreciation and financing charges, as well as revaluation and impairment losses.

Revenue rose 26.9 percent year-on-year to HK$10.99 billion, mainly driven by the full year contribution from The Peninsula London.

The Peninsula Hong Kong's revenue grew 3 percent year-on-year to HK$1.07 billion in 2024, as occupancy rose 6 percentage points and revenue per available room climbed 10 percent, despite a 5 percent drop in the average room rate.

The company' priorities in the short to medium term are to stabilize the financial performance of its new hotels, reduce debt, and grow the revenue and profitability to then be well placed for growth, chief executive Benjamin Vuchot said in an exchange filing.

"The operational results indicate an emerging recovery from the difficult pandemic years, but still have some way to go to achieve growth."

Vuchot said that Hong Kong's long-haul leisure travel market is improving and an increasing number of visitors are returning from Southeast Asia and the Middle East.