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1. Despite rising insurance costs, development continues in Florida
Florida is prone to natural disasters, no better exemplified by the two hurricanes that recently ravaged the state over a two-week span. But real estate developers continue to build in high-risk flood areas, despite insurance costs steadily rising while its coverage lessens, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Florida built 77,000 new properties in high-risk flood areas since 2019, the most in the U.S., the newspaper reports. Insurance bills from storms Milton and Helene are expected to be between $40 billion and $75 billion.
“We build in some of the most silly places, knowing what could happen,” said Andrew Siffert, senior meteorologist at insurance broker BMS Group.
2. Hong Kong cuts liquor tax to spur tourism
Hong Kong is releasing a significant cut to a liquor tax with hopes it will boost its tourism scene and reputation as a travel destination, the Associated Press reports. Spirits with an import price of more than 200 Hong Kong dollars ($26) will have their duty rate cut from 100% to 10%.
Since the pandemic, local spending has been down, and residents have preferred to spend their weekends in mainland China, the AP reports. Revenue at bars in the city was down about 28% in the first half of 2024 compared to 2019.
“We must remain confident in ourselves and uphold our morale, standing firm against any efforts to downplay our success story,” said John Lee, chief executive of Hong Kong.
3. Hotel executives weigh international travel imbalance for US
International inbound travel to the U.S. remains down compared to pre-pandemic levels, while outbound travel remains up. The main holdup is the return of Asian travelers, especially from countries such as China and Japan, HNN reports from The Lodging Conference.
Speaking during the "A View from the Top" session at The Lodging Conference, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts President and CEO Geoff Ballotti said the U.S. has "fallen behind" with inbound travel.
"Seventy million people went out of our country last year is the statistic. Fifty million came in. We're a net-exporter of travel," he said. "There's no reason we should have fallen behind the way we have over the last few years."
4. Lufthansa fined record $4 million in civil rights violation
The Transportation Department fined German airline Lufthansa $4 million after concluding it discriminated against 128 Jewish passengers flying from New York to Hungary in 2022, not allowing them to make a connecting flight in Germany, the New York Times reports. This is the largest fine the Transportation Department has levied for a civil rights violation.
"The Transportation Department said Lufthansa did not allow the passengers to embark on their connecting flight because of the misbehavior of a small number of individuals on the first leg of their journey. Most of the affected passengers were Jewish men in traditional Orthodox attire, who were treated as a single entity and penalized for the actions of a few, the department said," the newspaper reports.
5. Group including Pharrell Williams will buy historic Paris hotel
Mohari Hospitality, Omnam Investment Group and musician Pharrell Williams acquired the property formerly known as the Hotel Saint-James & Albany in Paris, according to a news release. The historical property is located on the right bank of The Seine in the 1st arrondissement of Paris.
"This project exemplifies our dedication to identifying and creating unique luxury hospitality projects that deliver unparalleled experiences in the world's most desirable destinations," said J. Allen Smith, CEO of Mohari Hospitality. "It is but the latest example of how, in partnership with Omnam, we can apply our market knowledge, operating expertise and industry insight to bring back to life an exceptional property. We intend to honor the property's extraordinary romantic heritage while creating a new hotel which represents the state of the art of modern luxury hospitality."