Hotel CEOs Say They’re Cautiously Optimistic About Corporate Travel

Hotel occupancy in the U.S. was the highest it's ever been during a second quarter — 69.5 percent, according to STR in 2017. Unemployment is at a record low of 4.3 percent. The gross domestic product, or GDP, is sluggishly moving up. But you wouldn't know it if you were to examine the major hotel companies' revenue per available room (RevPAR) indices, or their average daily rates for the most recent quarter, says Michael Bellisario, senior research analyst for Baird Equity Research. "Consumer confidence is at near all-time highs," he said. "Almost any macro indicator we've looked at would say the setup for 2017 would be a lot better, election and improved sentiment aside. Why isn't RevPAR better?" The CEOs of Marriott and Hilton are Speaking at Skift Global Forum 2017. Get Tickets Now While domestic RevPAR was up for most major hotel companies in the second quarter, it wasn't quite as high as you might expect given the current economic indicators. The second quarter was