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1. Hong Kong Security Law Threatens International Trade
A new security law passed in Hong Kong is expected to place more pressure on international companies that trade in what was once one of the world's major business hubs. The BBC reports that the law broadens the definition of treason, sedition and conveying state secrets and permits closed-door trials that human rights activists warn threaten individual freedoms.
World leaders have similarly expressed major concerns about the Hong Kong security law, which critics add is strongly influenced by China.
“This new law, rushed through the legislative process, will have far-reaching implications for all of these areas. … The broad definitions of national security and external interference will make it harder for those who live, work and do business in Hong Kong. It fails to provide certainty for international organizations,” David Cameron, the United Kingdom’s secretary of state for foreign, commonwealth and development affairs, said in an official statement Tuesday.
2. Peninsula Hotels’ Parent Shows First Profit Since Lockdown
Hongkong and Shanghai Hotels, the parent company of the Peninsula Hotels brand, has posted its first profit since the onset of the pandemic. Its net profit reached 146 million Hong Kong dollars ($16.66 million). In full-year 2022, the firm showed a loss of 488 million Hong Kong dollars, according to a recently published earnings release.
Company executives said 2023 has been a landmark year, opening hotels in London and Istanbul, the first time it had opened two hotels in the same year in its 157-year history. Its hotels in Hong Kong, Shanghai and Beijing all reported improved performance as China ended its tight pandemic restrictions. The firm also said work to a proposed hotel in Myanmar remains on hold. Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, has been in a state of civil war for the past three years.
3. UK Inflation Falls But Cost of Living Does Not
Inflation in the United Kingdom fell to 3.4% in February, Sky News reports. U.K. inflation is at its lowest level in approximately 30 months, due to a slower pace in pricing increases for hotels, restaurants and food, according to the Office For National Statistics. The ONS added that the cost of living in the UK is not falling but prices are rising less quickly.
Inflation in January rose 4.2% year over year. The ONS said the consumer prices index increased 0.6% monthly. The ruling Conservative Party said the numbers show the government’s plan is working, while the Labour Party called for a general election to be held earlier than its deadline of Jan. 28, 2025. The target inflation rate for the Bank of England and the government is 2%.
4. Radisson Names Veteran Sharma CEO of South Asia
Radisson Hotel Group has appointed Nikhil Sharma as its new managing director and area senior vice president of South Asia, according to India's Business Standard. Sharma will take up his new role on April 1. The region has approximately 165 hotels in operation and development.
Sharma joins Radisson from Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, where he was market managing director for Eurasia. Before that he was chief operating officer at Ginger Hotel, a sister hotel company to Taj Hotels and part of the Indian Hotels Co. Ltd. He also was a co-founder of India’s Lemon Tree Hotel Co.
5. Birmingham’s Edgbaston Cricket Stadium To Add Hotel
Edgbaston in Birmingham, one of the main U.K. cricket stadiums to host international and Test Match cricket, has received funding from West Midlands Combined Authority to open its first hotel, according to The Construction Index.
Warwickshire County Cricket Club received the nod to redevelop two of the stadium’s stands and add a “new four-star hotel.” Subject to planning approval, work will begin in September 2025, with an opening due date of spring 2027, in time for The Ashes series of matches against England’s greatest foe, Australia.