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1. Japan’s One REIT acquires five hotels in $190M deal
Tokyo-based real estate investment trust One REIT Investment Corp. has agreed to acquire six properties, including five hotels, in Japan in a deal valued at 29.9 billion Japanese yen ($189.3 million), according to Hong Kong-based website Mingtiandi, which said the acquisition is being funded through a public unit offering, bank borrowing and cash.
One REIT signed the deal on March 5 and expects it to close on March 19. One REIT’s disclosure document lists the five hotels, and their relevant acquisition cost, as the 80-room Quintessa Hotel Fukuoka Hakata Relax & Spa (JPY 4.18 billion; $26.5 million); 97-room Quintessa Hotel Kagoshima Tenmonkan Relax & Spa (JPY 1.76 billion; $11.2 million); 155-room Quintessa Hotel Sapporo Susukino (JPY 4.02 billion; $25.5 million); 259-room Hedistar Hotel Narita (JPY 4.8 billion; $30.4 million) and 333-room DoubleTree by Hilton Naha Shuri Castle (JPY 10.5 billion; $66.5 million). According to One REIT’s website, before the deal it owned two hotels, the 106-room Candeo Hotels Kyoto Karasuma Rokkaku, which it acquired for approximately JPY 4.8 billion ($30.4 million), and the 240-room Comfort Inn Nagoya Sakae Ekimae, which it acquired for approximately JPY 7.7 billion ($48.8 million).
2. Oil price moves above $100 for first time since start of Ukraine war
Due to tensions in the Middle East, the price of oil has risen above the threshold of $100 for the first time since 2022, the rise then caused by the offset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. According to The New York Times, the price on March 9 soared as high as $120 a barrel before settling at approximately $110, and is “now about 50% more expensive than it was before the U.S. and Israel began attacking Iran on Feb. 28.”
The newspaper said among general fears of inflation increases, even the start of a recession, “the huge jump … suggests that traders are increasingly worried about being able to access oil and natural gas from the Persian Gulf. The Strait of Hormuz, a waterway on Iran’s southern coast, has been all but closed for more than a week.”
3. Bad Bunny Super Bowl elevates Puerto Rico hotels demand
Hotels in Puerto Rico have hailed the Super Bowl halftime show star, Bad Bunny, as having elevated demand and interest in the Caribbean isle, an organized and unincorporated territory of the U.S.
According to CoStar News Hotels’ Natalie Harms, the show came at the perfect moment, with “the so-called ‘Bad Bunny effect,’ [seeing] growth of luxury hotel supply, new flights in and out of Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport, expansion of the San Juan Cruise Port, growing the power grid and recovery from previous storms and hurricanes.”
Harms writes that the island has seen a 25% increase in luxury hotel rooms since 2024. Alinio Azevedo, luxury and lifestyle managing director, Driftwood Capital, said, “what you’ve seen over the past few years in Puerto Rico is really an inflow of capital to upgrade the existing hotel basis. … There’s a lot of examples of capital being invested in existing hotels on the island to make them better.”
4. Hotel evacuated in huge Glasgow rail station fire
Guests staying at the 233-room Voco Grand Central Glasgow were evacuated on March 8 when a fire broke out at Glasgow Central rail station. Scottish newspaper The Herald said the fire started at approximately 3:45 p.m. GMT and required 60 firefighters to attend, adding “the corner of Union Street and Gordon Street later collapsed as the fire continued to spread.” There were no casualties, and the hotel was evacuated as a precautionary measure.
The Herald said the incident started at a shop that sells vapes, a site that once was the George Hotel, which was built in 1907 and has hosted luminaries such as Joan Crawford, Cary Grant and Stan Laurel. Paul Sweeney, a member of the Scottish Parliament for Glasgow, told The Herald the fire is a “massive blow to Union Street with the restoration of the Egyptian Halls in prospect,” referring to a huge renovation project that has just started in the immediate area.
5. Korea cracks down on hotel pricing violations around BTS gig
The metropolitan government of Korean capital Seoul has cracked down on what it says is hotel operating and pricing violations in connection with a March 21 gig to be performed by K-pop band BTS in Seoul’s Gwanghwamun Square, according to The Korea Herald. The gig is the first date on a world tour by the Seoul-based pop combo after the band members took time away from music due to completing mandatory military service.
The city authorities claim numerous hotels have violated hotel regulations, “mainly for failing to display required price lists or business registration certificates.” It added it is investigating “18 businesses (that) may face criminal charges. Violations could lead to penalties of up to six months in prison or fines of up to 5 million Korean won ($3,370) if confirmed.”