FT : IHG says hotel demand ‘getting closer’ to pre-pandemic levels

IHG says hotel demand ‘getting closer’ to pre-pandemic levels
Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza owner reinstates dividend

InterContinental Hotel Group, the owner of Holiday Inn and Crowne Plaza chains, said that business was “getting closer to pre-pandemic levels” in 2021, as rising vaccination rates and easing of travel restrictions boosted demand for its hotel rooms.

The sector was affected by the spread of coronavirus and lockdowns that prevented travellers from visiting its hotels, but it has begun to rebound. IHG said its revenue per available room, the industry’s preferred metric, has returned to 70 per cent of 2019 levels.

Keith Barr, chief executive, said on Tuesday: “As vaccination rates rise and restrictions are lifted around the world, we are seeing the demand for travel increase. While there may be unexpected challenges ahead, we are confident in our ability to respond and adapt to what consumers and owners need.”

Operating profit from reportable segments doubled from 2020 to 2021 to $534mn, slightly ahead of analysts’ estimates. Group operating profit was $494mn, bouncing back from a loss of $153mn in 2020.

Revenue per available room recovered strongly in the US, to 20 per cent below 2019 levels, while the company’s operations in Greater China and the Europe, the Middle East and Africa regions were down 29 per cent and 52 per cent on 2019 levels respectively.

Given the profit growth and a reduction in debt, Barr said the company would reinstate its dividend, suspended since 2019, with a payout of 85.9 cents per share.

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 22nd of February 2022 V2(+)

>>> Up
* AMD Raised to Outperform at Bernstein; PT $150
* Belimo Raised to Add at Baader Helvea; PT 510 Swiss francs (+)
* BP Raised to Reduce at AlphaValue/Baader
* Nibe Raised to Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; PT 70 kronor
* Orsted Raised to Overweight at Barclays; PT 900 kroner
* Paragon Raised to Buy at Investec; PT 610 pence (+)
* Poste Italiane PT Raised to 15.50 euros at Barclays
* S4 Capital Raised to Buy at Numis; PT 599 pence (+)
* Spectris Raised to Buy at Peel Hunt; PT 3,470 pence
* Tenaris Raised to Add at AlphaValue/Baader
* Valiant Raised to Add at Baader Helvea; PT 110 Swiss francs
* Voestalpine Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse; PT 43 euros

>>> Down
* Goodyear Cut to Hold at Jefferies; PT $17
* Kahoot Cut to Neutral at SpareBank; PT 30 kroner
* Lehto Group Cut to Sell at SEB Equities; PT 30 euro cents
* Pennon Cut to Underperform at Jefferies; PT 900 pence
* Severn Trent Cut to Underperform at Jefferies; PT 2,480 pence
* SSAB Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse; PT 57 kronor
* United Utilities Cut to Hold at Jefferies; PT 1,000 pence

>>> Initiation
* Faurecia SE Reinstated Hold at Jefferies; PT 38 euros
* Nexi Rated New Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; PT 13 euros
* Prudential Rated New Outperform at CICC; PT 1,656.81 pence
* Seeing Machines Rated New Buy at Berenberg; PT 12 pence
* Tracsis Rated New Buy at Liberum; PT 1,335 pence (+)

>>> Call
* Citi Strategists See Investor Positioning Turning More Bearish (+)
* Beiersdorf’s Eucerin Brand is ‘Losing its Mojo,’ RBC Trims PT
* Casino Seeks Cash Lever With Mercialys Stake Sale: Bryan Garnier (+)
* Eurofins Scientific Raised Guidance Should Be Taken Well: Citi (+)
* Insatiable U.K. Housing Demand, Lack of Stock Spur Buyer Rivalry
* Nibe Risks Now Reflected in Stock, Morgan Stanley Upgrades
* SoftBank Needs to Sell More Alibaba Shares This Year: Jefferies
* Spectris ‘Catalysts Abound,’ Upgraded to Buy at Peel Hunt
* Ubisoft Becoming More Reliable and Price Is ‘Reasonable:’ Citi (+)
* U.K. Water Cos. Cut at Jefferies on Regulatory and Opex Risks

>>> Stoxx 600 Pre-Market Indications

  • Equinor (DNQ TH) +3.4%
  • Direct Line (D1LN TH) +1.4%
  • BAE (BSP TH) +0.7%
  • ams-OSRAM (DQW1 TH) -6.4%
  • Glencore (8GC TH) -6.5%
  • Mowi (PND TH) -6.8%
  • Lufthansa (LHA TH) -7.2%
    • CNN Philippines: Air France and Lufthansa are the latest airlines to suspend flights into Ukraine as fears of a Russian invasion
  • IAG (INR TH) -7.8%
  • Worldline (WO6 TH) -7.9%
    • Worldline Sees 2022 Organic Revenue +8% to +10%
  • TUI (TUI1 TH) -8.2%
  • Raiffeisen (RAW TH) -8.4%
  • Rolls-Royce (RRU TH) -8.6%
  • Klepierre (KPR TH) -9%

>>> TradeGate Pre-Market Indications

DAX:
  • Vonovia (VNA TH) -1.3%
  • Beiersdorf (BEI TH) -1.4%
  • Symrise (SY1 TH) -1.4%
  • Henkel (HEN3 TH) -1.8%
  • Puma (PUM TH) -1.9%
  • Airbus (AIR TH) -4.3%
  • Zalando (ZAL TH) -4.4%
  • Deutsche Bank (DBK TH) -4.5%
  • HelloFresh (HFG TH) -4.6%
  • Delivery Hero (DHER TH) -6.1%
MDAX:
  • Befesa (BFSA TH) -1.9%
  • TAG Immobilien (TEG TH) -2.2%
  • Lanxess (LXS TH) -2.3%
  • Aroundtown (AT1 TH) -2.5%
  • AUTO1 (AG1 TH) -3%
  • Lufthansa (LHA TH) -6.8%
  • Wacker Chemie (WCH TH) -6.8%
  • Varta (VAR1 TH) -7%
  • Aurubis (NDA TH) -7.1%
  • Fraport (FRA TH) -7.7%
SDAX:
  • Hamborner REIT (HABA TH) -1.1%
  • Traton (8TRA TH) -1.1%
  • Global Fashion Group (GFG TH) -1.2%
  • DIC Asset (DIC TH) -1.6%
  • Schaeffler (SHA TH) -2%
  • Takkt (TTK TH) -7.1%
  • Eckert & Ziegler (EUZ TH) -7.2%
  • GFT (GFT TH) -7.4%
  • PVA TePla (TPE TH) -7.4%
  • Deutsche Euroshop (DEQ TH) -11%

TechCrunch : Meta sent a new draft decision on its EU-US data transfers

Meta sent a new draft decision on its EU-US data transfers

Facebook has received a “revised” preliminary decision from its lead EU privacy regulator with implications for its ability to continue to export user data to the US, TechCrunch has learned.

“Meta has 28 days to make submissions on this preliminary decision at which point we will prepare a draft Article 60 decision for other Concerned Supervisory Authorities (CSAs). I’d anticipate that this will happen in April,” a deputy commissioner at the Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC), Graham Doyle, told us.

Doyle declined to detail the contents of the preliminary decision.

However, back in September 2020, the DPC sent a preliminary order telling Facebook to suspend data transfers, per a Wall Street Journal report at the time, citing people familiar with the matter.

Meta, as the tech giant has recently rebranded its data-mining empire, has been flagging the ongoing risk to its EU-US data transfers in calls with investors.

It also immediately sought to challenge the DPC’s earlier draft order in the courts — but that legal avenue ran out of road in May last year when the Irish High Court issued a ruling dismissing the challenge to the DPC procedures.

It’s not clear there has been any material change to the facts of the case — which hinges on the clash between European data protection law and US surveillance powers — since the earlier draft order telling the company to suspend transfers that would lead the regulator to arrive at a different conclusion now, regardless of what Meta submits at this next stage.

Moreover, in recent months, other European data protection agencies have been issuing decisions against other US services that involve the transfers of personal data to the US — such as Google Analytics — which is, from an optics perspective at least, amping up the pressure on the DPC to finalize a decision against Meta.

The regulator also faced a procedural challenge by the original complainant, Max Schrems, who extracted an agreement from it, in January 2021, that it would swiftly finalize the long-standing complaint — so that’s another quasi deadline in play.

Under the terms of that settlement, the DPC agreed Schrems would also be heard in its (parallel) “own volition” procedure — which it opened in addition to its complaint-based enquiry related to his original (2013) complaint, and which is now moving forward via this new preliminary decision issued to Meta.

Schrems confirmed he has been sent the decision by the DPC — but made no further comment.

(For yet more twists, back in November, the privacy advocacy group founded by Schrems filed a complaint of criminal corruption against the DPC — accusing the regulator of “procedural blackmail” in relation to attempts to prevent publication of other draft complaints… )

It’s still not clear how long exactly this multi-year data transfer saga could drag on before a final decision hits Meta — potentially ordering it to suspend transfers.

But it should be closer to months than years, now.

The Article 60 process loops in other interested data protection agencies — who have the ability to make reasoned objections to a draft decision by a lead authority within, initially, a month timeframe. Although there can be extensions. And if there is major disagreement between DPAs over a preliminary decision it can add months to the final decision-making process — and could ultimately require the European Data Protection Board to step in and push a final decision.

All that’s still to come; for now the ball is back in Meta’s court to see what fresh blather its lawyers can come up with.

The tech giant was contacted for comment on the latest development and in a statement a Meta spokesperson told us:

“This is not a final decision and the IDPC have asked for further legal submissions. Suspending data transfers would be damaging not only to the millions of people, charities, and businesses in the EU who use our services, but also to thousands of other companies who rely on EU-US data transfers to provide a global service. A long-term solution on EU-US data transfers is needed to keep people, businesses and economies connected.”

There is another moving piece to this apparently neverending story — as negotiations between the European Commission and the US on a replacement to the defunct Privacy Shield data transfer arrangement remain ongoing.

In recent months, Facebook and Google have been making public calls for a new transatlantic data transfer deal to be agreed — urging a high level fix for the legal uncertainty now facing scores of US cloud services (or at least those that refuse to give up their own access to people’s data-in-the-clear).

However the Commission has previously warned there will be no ‘quick fix’ this time — saying back in 2020 that a replacement would only be possible if all the issues identified by the European Court of Justice in its July ruling which invalidated Privacy Shield can be resolved (which means both a legal and accessible means of redress for Europeans and tackling disproportionate US surveillance powers which rely on bulk intercepts of Internet communications).

So, in short, Privacy Shield 3.0 looks like a tall order — certainly in the kind of short order that Meta’s business-as-usual demands… So chief lobbyist, Nick Clegg, certainly has his work cut out!

>>> What to look at today - 22nd of February 2022 - (22/2/22)

Stocks slid Tuesday on intensifying tension between the West and Russia over Ukraine, a standoff that’s bolstering oil prices and leading investors to seek the relative safety of sovereign bonds and bullion. An Asia-Pacific share gauge fell to its lowest level this month, including sharp declines in Hong Kong, where Chinese technology firms dropped and Russia-based aluminum producer United Co. Rusal International PJSC sank the most since 2018. 
U.S. futures pointed to a lower Wall Street open when trading resumes after a holiday.  President Vladimir Putin recognized two self-proclaimed separatist republics in eastern Ukraine and ordered the Defense Ministry to send what he called “peacekeeping forces” to the breakaway regions.  Western leaders condemned the latest moves and the U.S. prepared to announce new sanctions against Russia. The U.S. has warned of a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine, a claim the Kremlin has repeatedly rejected. Oil jumped as traders weighed the risk of disruptions to supplies of energy and other commodities, such as nickel and aluminum, if the situation deteriorates.  An index of Chinese tech firms tumbled on concerns of fresh regulatory curbs from Beijing. Investors are also continuing to monitor commentary on the U.S. monetary-policy path. Fed Governor Michelle Bowman suggested that a half percentage-point increase in interest rates could be on the table next month if incoming readings on inflation come in too high. But the Ukraine crisis is overshadowing all else in markets for the moment. The ruble tumbled the most since March 2020 after Putin recognized the self-declared separatist republics.

Nikkei -1.72% Hang Seng -2.85% CSI -1.55% Shanghai -1.21% Shenzen -1.47%

Eur$ 1.1306 CNH 6.3408 NY 6.3429 JPY 114.73 GBP 1.3595 CHF 0.9163 RUB 79.22 TRY 13.6580 WTI$ 93.86 +3.10% Gold 1,908.25 +0.10% BTC 36,800 -0.75% ETH 2,520 -2.40%

S&P -1.58% Nasdaq -2.16% EuroStoxx -1.37% FTSE -0.49% Dax -1.75% SMI -1.11%

Macro :
- Goldman Team Says S&P May Drop 6% if Ukraine Conflict Worsens
- U.K.’s Johnson Ends Virus Rules in England in Major Policy Shift
- Putin Plans to Sign Ukraine Separatist Recognition: Kremlin

Keep an eye on :
- AAPL US : TSMC Wins All of Apple’s 5G Radio Frequency Chip Orders: EDN
- BABA US : *Meituan Falls 6.6%, Alibaba Group Drops 5.3%, Tencent Holdings Loses 2.7%
- ALN SW : Also Sees 2022 Ebitda EU275M to EU420M
- AG1 GY : AUTO1 Secures Supply of >10,000 Vehicles/Yr in Pact With Allane
- BAKKA NO : Bakkafrost 4Q Operating Ebit Misses Estimates
- BONHR NO : Fred. Olsen Windcarrier Decides to Place IPO process on Hold
- CO FP : Casino Sells 6.5% of Mercialys, Proceeds Amount to EU59M
- CEP SM : Cepsa Sees First Offers on Chemicals Unit This Week: Expansion
- EDEN FP : Edenred FY Ebitda Beats Estimates
- EDF FP : EDF Credit Rating Cut as State Financial Support Seen Lacking
- ENG SM : Enagas FY Net Income Beats Estimates
- ERF FP : Eurofins Scientific Boosts 2022 Rev. Forecast, Meets Estimates
- FME GY : Fresenius Medical 4Q Operating Income Misses Estimates
- FRE GY : Fresenius SE 4Q Adjusted Ebit Matches Estimates, Now Sees 2020-2023 Net Goal at Bottom of Range
- GREEN BB : Greenyard 3Q Revenue EU1.06B
- HSBA LN : HSBC 4Q Adjusted Pretax Profit Misses Estimates
- HSBA LN : HSBC to Buy Back Another $1 Billion of Shares as Profit Jumps
- KAMBI SS : Kambi CEO Kristian Nylen Buys 22,500 Shares
- MEDX SW : Medmix FY Adjusted Ebitda CHF114.5M Vs. CHF66M Y/y
- MERY FP : Casino Sells 6.5% of Mercialys, Proceeds Amount to EU59M
- AERO SW : Montana Aerospace FY Net Sales EU767.5M Vs. EU614M Y/y
- NHY NO : Norsk Hydro 4Q Adjusted Ebitda Misses Estimates
- POM FP : Plastic Omnium Sees 2022 Operating Margin 5% to 6%
- PSPN SW : PSP Swiss FY Rental Income Beats Estimates
- RWAY IM : Italy May Allow Rai to Cut RAI Way Stake Under 51%: Repubblica
- RIO LN : Rio Tinto Results to Focus on Cost Guidance, Payout: Preview
- 486 HK : Rusal Plunges 22% in Hong Kong Amid Russia-Ukraine Tensions
- SDRL NO : Seadrill Expects to Emerge From Chapter 11 Process in Feb.
- 9984 JP : SoftBank Needs to Sell More Alibaba Shares This Year: Jefferies
- SBS GY : Stratec Founder Leistner Said to Weigh Options, Including Sale
- 02D GY : Telefonica Deutschland Extends CEO Contract For Three Years
- WLN FP : Worldline Sees 2022 Organic Revenue +8% to +10%

>>> Europe : Brokers Upgrades & Downgrades - 22nd of February 2022 (22/2/22)

>>> Up
* AMD Raised to Outperform at Bernstein; PT $150
* BP Raised to Reduce at AlphaValue/Baader
* Nibe Raised to Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; PT 70 kronor
* Orsted Raised to Overweight at Barclays; PT 900 kroner
* Poste Italiane PT Raised to 15.50 euros at Barclays
* Spectris Raised to Buy at Peel Hunt; PT 3,470 pence
* Tenaris Raised to Add at AlphaValue/Baader
* Valiant Raised to Add at Baader Helvea; PT 110 Swiss francs
* Voestalpine Raised to Outperform at Credit Suisse; PT 43 euros

>>> Down
* Goodyear Cut to Hold at Jefferies; PT $17
* Kahoot Cut to Neutral at SpareBank; PT 30 kroner
* Lehto Group Cut to Sell at SEB Equities; PT 30 euro cents
* Pennon Cut to Underperform at Jefferies; PT 900 pence
* Severn Trent Cut to Underperform at Jefferies; PT 2,480 pence
* SSAB Cut to Neutral at Credit Suisse; PT 57 kronor
* United Utilities Cut to Hold at Jefferies; PT 1,000 pence

>>> Initiation
* Faurecia SE Reinstated Hold at Jefferies; PT 38 euros
* Nexi Rated New Equal-Weight at Morgan Stanley; PT 13 euros
* Prudential Rated New Outperform at CICC; PT 1,656.81 pence
* Seeing Machines Rated New Buy at Berenberg; PT 12 pence

>>> Call
* Beiersdorf’s Eucerin Brand is ‘Losing its Mojo,’ RBC Trims PT
* Insatiable U.K. Housing Demand, Lack of Stock Spur Buyer Rivalry
* Nibe Risks Now Reflected in Stock, Morgan Stanley Upgrades
* SoftBank Needs to Sell More Alibaba Shares This Year: Jefferies
* Spectris ‘Catalysts Abound,’ Upgraded to Buy at Peel Hunt
* U.K. Water Cos. Cut at Jefferies on Regulatory and Opex Risks

Business Of Fashion : Creative Agency MA + Group Launches NFT and Metaverse Divi

Creative Agency MA + Group Launches NFT and Metaverse Division
It believes brands will need talent that can create 3D avatars and make NFTs as much as they currently need stylists and photographers to help them craft and communicate their images.
The work of Hi From The Future, which designs virtual worlds and avatars and is now represented by MA + Group. (Hi From The Future)

By
22 February 2022
BoF PROFESSIONAL

Just as brands depend on stylists, photographers and other creatives to help them craft and communicate their images, MA + Group thinks they will need talent that can create 3D avatars, build immersive digital stores, make NFT collections and more as fashion enters the worlds of web3 and the metaverse.
The agency representing creatives such as photographer Hugo Comte and digital artist Hey Reilly said today it is adding a new group of digital specialists to its roster. Among them are Superficial, an art and design studio that creates virtual worlds; DVTK, which builds interactive experiences; Samuel Walker, who designs 3D and digital fashion; and NFT artists such as Kevin McCoy, creator of the first NFT ever minted.
“There’s a huge opportunity for creativity in this world, not only at a technical software level but at a real creative level, particularly in our industry that as we know has specific tastes and aesthetic codes,” said Massimiliano Di Battista, the agency’s co-founder and chief executive. “In the same way a fashion photographer is so important to shoot a great campaign and great visuals that stand and market a brand, the same brand will need an incredible 3D designer.”
Jordan Robinson, who previously worked consulting tech startups, advising companies on blockchain and creating NFT art himself, is joining MA + Group as its strategy expert for the new division.

The metaverse doesn’t yet exist, at least not like the sprawling network of 3D virtual worlds traversable with a single identity that tech visionaries have imagined. Web3, an envisioned next phase of the internet with a decentralized architecture enabled by blockchain technology, is also still in its early stages.
Even so, fashion brands are trying to capitalise on the emerging opportunities as digital assets such as NFTs take off and more users find their way to online games that double as social spaces, including Fortnite, Roblox and blockchain-based worlds like The Sandbox. Morgan Stanley has estimated that, by 2030, the luxury market could generate as much as €50 billion ($57 billion) in additional revenue from sales of digital assets and using games as a marketing channel.
Agencies are banking on brands needing help to enter this world. Al Dente, a creative agency with a number of luxury clients, recently bought land in The Sandbox it hopes to develop into a venue for luxury brands to explore the potential for storytelling and e-commerce in the space.
“It’s simply just another distribution channel and another engagement channel,” Robinson said. “Having an advisor and having a strategic approach to this is prudent because actually, if you take a misstep, sometimes it can backfire and it can all look like a money-grabbing activity.”