Bass plans Asian expansion

Bass plans Asian expansion

SINGAPORE (AFP): Bass Hotels Friday unveiled a US$70 million
expansion plan for its Inter-Continental Hotel brand, targeting
the growing business and tourism travel market in the Asia
Pacific region.

Fourteen hotels will be established or refurbished over the
next two years in China, India, Malaysia, French Polynesia and
New Zealand.

Bass, which operates more than 3,000 hotels around the world,
including the Holiday Inn chain, has ear-marked Asia-Pacific as a
key growth region.

"We have been experiencing a significant growth in visitor
levels in the region," said Richard Hartman, the managing
director of Bass Hotels Asia Pacific division.

"Each and every market in Asia Pacific recorded a boost in
tourism arrivals in 1998 to 1999, with an average increase across
the region of nine percent.

"We expect this growth to continue and strengthen over the
next two years."