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1. Israeli Tourism Drops as Hotels Take in Evacuees
Following an attack by Palestinian militant group Hamas earlier this month, tourism has dropped in Israel and Israeli-occupied Palestinian areas of Gaza and the West Bank, Reuters reports.
"Business is at a standstill since the war started," said Essa Abu Dawoud, a tour guide in the Palestinian city. "The roads were cut off, no one is coming."
In a separate article, Reuters also reports that half of Israel's hotel rooms are housing Israeli evacuees with the state covering the cost. Israel Hotel Association CEO Yael Danieli said 28,000 hotel rooms are occupied by people fleeing the fighting.
2. Economists Lower Recession Expectations
In the Wall Street Journal's latest quarterly survey, economists lowered the probability of a recession within the next year to 48%, down from 54% in July. They expect on average that gross domestic product will increase 2.2% year over year in the fourth quarter, up from the 1% projection in the last survey.
“The probability of recession continues to recede in the U.S. as the banking turmoil subsides and strong labor market resilience and rising real incomes support consumer demand,” BMO economists Doug Porter and Scott Anderson said in the survey.
3. Explaining the ADA 'Tester' Hotel Case Before the Supreme Court
In a podcast interview with HNN, Dana Kravetz, managing partner at law firm Michelman & Robinson, said the Acheson Hotels v. Laufer case recently argued before the U.S. Supreme Court could result in a decision over the plaintiff's standing.
The case centers around a plaintiff who sued a hotel company over not providing the required description on its website of the accessibility features at one of its hotels. The question at hand is whether the plaintiff had standing to sue the hotel if she did not intend to actually stay at the hotel since she was acting as a "tester."
4. Hilton Launches New Platforms for Small-, Medium-Sized Businesses
Hilton will offer two new digital platforms to help small- and medium-sized businesses with travel, according to a news release. The company has announced Hilton for Business and Small Meetings and Events Packages through Events.Hilton.com.
“Even as the global pandemic significantly impacted global travel, small- and medium-sized business travelers never slowed down,” said Chris Silcock, executive vice president and chief commercial officer, Hilton. “We used that opportunity to listen and learn how we could solve long-running pain points and deliver what these businesses need most — simple booking and travel management tools and recognition and rewards for their loyalty.”
5. How China's Evergrande Fell
When property developer China Evergrande Group ran into financial problems in 2021, it sought help from the government over its large amount of debt, the Wall Street Journal reports. Hui Ka Yan, the company's founder and chairman, agreed to government conditions on the aid, making several promises the company would be unable to fulfill.
An analysis by the newspaper found that about 800,000 of the company's 1.2 million pre-sold housing units are unfinished, upsetting buyers who spent billions.