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1. Holiday travel decline expected
A new report from Deloitte projects fewer trips and lower spending on travel during the holiday season for Americans, Reuters report. Season travel budgets are down 18% year over year to $2,334 and the average number of trips dropped from 2.14 to 1.83.
Notably, the trend is also holding true for higher income brackets that have been more resilient travelers, with 80% of households earnings over $100,000 expecting to opt for less expensive travel.
"Over the past two months, travel companies, including Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and hotel operator Marriott International, have pointed to solid demand for high-end offerings such as premium seats and luxury hotels," Reuters reports. "But that trend may be shifting, and the effect on airlines, lodgings and tour operators may be disproportionate, as high-income travelers typically spend more and travel farther."
2. House vote on funding US government set
The U.S. House of Representative is slated today to vote on a package to fund and reopen the federal government, The New York Times reports.
The House is ending its 54-day recess to take up the legislation passed Monday by the Senate, with the margin of the vote expected to be extremely close despite the Republican majority.
"That legislation, passed on Monday, would fund the government through Jan. 30 and includes spending bills that cover programs related to agriculture, military construction, veterans and legislative agencies for most of next year," the newspaper reports. "The measure also includes a provision that would restore the jobs of federal workers who were laid off during the shutdown and guarantee back pay for those who were furloughed."
3. How Accor is reshaping itself and growing Emblems Collection
Accor has undergone a transformation for more than a decade, and the launch of luxury brand Emblems Collection is symbolic of the company's shift in the larger hotel industry, Terence Baker reports.
The company's 48th brand debuts with the 49-room Lucknam Park, Emblems Collection in the English county of Wiltshire.
Accor Chairman and CEO Sébastien Bazin said it was evident early in the process that establishing a presence on the high end of hospitality was vital.
“To get credibility in unknown territories, lifestyle and luxury are required. Previously, we did not have the expertise. I was terrified, but now the fear is out,” he said.
4. New hotel in LA Live expansion plans
The Los Angeles Times reports plans for expansions at the LA Live complex include a new hotel with 334 rooms and 364 residences, along with more restaurants and bars.
Owner AEG is simultaneously involved in the $2.6 billion expansion of the city's convention center, which is part of the complex along with Crypto.com Arena.
"AEG last week proposed a 49-story high-rise that would hold a hotel, residences, bars and restaurants," the newspaper reports. "The tower would rise across Olympic Boulevard from L.A. Live on a corner lot on Georgia Street now used by AEG for parking."
The project would be a rarity in the market, which has seen very little in terms of new hotel construction in recent years.
5. Fed split on December rate plans
Members of the Federal Reserve are seemingly at odds over whether to cut interest rates at their December meeting with competing concerns over inflation and a weak jobs outlook, The Wall Street Journal reports.
The split seemingly has been percolating for months.
"When policymakers agreed to cut rates by a quarter of a percentage point in September, 10 of 19 officials, a slim majority, penciled in cuts for October and December," the newspaper reports. "Cutting rates at three consecutive meetings would echo the downward adjustments [Chairman Jerome] Powell made last year and in 2019. But a contingent of hawks questioned the need for further reductions.
"Their resistance hardened after officials reduced rates again in late October to the current range between 3.75% and 4%. The debate over what to do in December was especially contentious, with hawks forcefully challenging the presumption of a third cut, according to public comments and recent interviews."