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1. California hotel openings drop by nearly half
California saw 21 hotels open during the first half of 2026, a 42% decline compared to the same period last year, according to the California Development Survey Mid-Year 2026 from Atlas Hospitality Group. The number of rooms opening also dropped, from 5,369 to 1,988.
The survey also found the number of hotels in the construction phase grew by 16% year over year from 99 to 115. The number of rooms under construction also rose by 16%, from 12,213 to 14,126.
However, hotels in planning dipped by 6% in both property count, 1,180 to 1,106, and room count, from 147,648 to 139,274.
2. Heatwave doesn't slow European hotel demand
The heatwave Europe experienced last week created, at best, uncomfortable situations for those living in and visiting the continent, but the data shows the high temperatures did not have a negative impact on the hotel industry, writes STR’s Kelsey Fenerty.
Overall, high-end hotel occupancy grew year over year each night for the week ending June 27, indicating the ongoing strength of international inbound travel and both corporate and group demand. Hotels in the select-service and budget segments saw occupancy fall during the middle of the week, but that turned into growth from Thursday to Saturday.
The capitals of Southern and Eastern European countries had the highest weekly occupancy growth. Markets in Northern Europe saw occupancy drop year over year, but this follows a trend continuing from over the prior three weeks.
“Among the outliers were Amsterdam, Brussels, and Prague, all of which reported occupancy growth well ahead of their monthly average due to double-digit growth over the weekend,” Fenerty writes. “The stronger weekends could point to ‘staycations,’ as residents escaped their overheated homes to temperature-controlled hotels.”
3. Hoteliers expect fireworks for July Fourth weekend
With the country's 250th anniversary over a long weekend and, in one lucky city, a FIFA World Cup match — hoteliers in Boston, Philadelphia and Washington, D.C., couldn't have asked for more this July Fourth. CoStar News Hotels' Bryan Wroten reports there's strong business on the books for these three historical cities leading into the holiday weekend.
"Given that occupancy in all three cities has already surpassed occupancy on the books last year, that’s a really good sign as we head into next weekend,” said Didio Pequeno, director of hospitality market analytics, Northeast and Midwestern U.S., at CoStar Group.
4. US declines to renew Canada, Mexico trade deal
The U.S. did not renew its USMCA trade deal with Canada and Mexico, which would have extended the agreement for another 16 years, the Wall Street Journal reports. The trade pact remains in place, but U.S. officials will now have to meet with representatives of Mexico and Canada annually to review the deal.
The agreement protected most of Canada's and Mexico's goods from tariffs last year, the newspaper reports. However, the U.S. is now looking to place some level of tariffs on goods in a renewed deal. Among other changes, the U.S. wants higher U.S. content in goods that comply with the agreement, including automobiles, as well as limiting Chinese content in goods.
5. US weekly jobless claims drop by 1,000
The U.S. Department of Labor reported that for the week ending June 27, the advance figure for seasonally adjusted initial jobless claims dropped by 1,000 from the week prior to 215,000, according to a news release. Last week's level was revised up by 1,000 to 216,000.
The four-week moving average was 222,000 a decrease of 2,500 from the week before. Last week's four-week moving average was revised up by 250 to 224,500.