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Italian Exhibition Group: Board of Directors approves half-yearly financial report

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The Board of Directors of Italian Exhibition Group S.p.A (IEG), a company listed last June on the Milan Stock Exchange organized and managed by Borsa Italiana S.p.A., approved, on today’s date, the half-yearly financial report as at June 30, 2019.

Main consolidated results in the first half of 2019


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The total revenues of the IEG Group amounted to € 99,932 thousand, growth of 29.3% over the € 77,309 thousand in the same period of the previous year. This result augments the significant growth already recorded at the end of 2018 (+ 22% over the previous year) and confirms IEG’s ability in development and integration projects.

EBITDA1 , following the application of IFRS 16, which generated a positive effect of approximately € 1.9 million, and EBIT reached € 26,575 thousand and € 17,691 thousand respectively, growth compared to the 2018 values, which did not reflect the effects of IFRS 16, which stood at € 17,039 and € 11,801 thousand respectively.

Without taking account of the effects of the aforementioned accounting standard, EBITDA1 and EBIT therefore recorded increases of + 44.8% and + 49.6% compared to the same period in the previous year, also confirming the further strengthening in the ability to manage operating costs and stabilise the efficiencies already achieved in the second part of the previous year.

The Group’s net result, albeit feeling the effects of the higher financial management expenses due to the application of IFRS 16 amounting to € 330 thousand and other expenses connected to the figurative payables from put options, stood at € 10,679 thousand, growth of 40.2% compared to € 7,618 thousand in the first half of 2018.

As at June 30th, 2019, the net cash financial situation, therefore without taking into account the higher payables of roughly € 32 million as a result of IFRS 16, financial payables for any future put options of € 15.8 million and derivative financial instruments for € 5.9 million, totalled € 66.5 million compared to € 66.9 million as at June 30th, 2018 and € 49.2 million as at December 31st, 2018. The latter increase is due primarily to the changes in Net Working Capital resulting from the seasonal cycle (around € 4.6 million), investments (€ 5.7 million) and the distribution of ordinary dividends which took place in May (€ 5.6 million).

The consolidated shareholders’ equity as at June 30th, 2019 came to approximately € 105.2 million, compared to € 102.5 million as at December 31st, 2018.

Results by business segment in the first half of 2019

The significant growth in revenues in the period derives from the positive results achieved by each business line and the increase of roughly € 22.6 million compared to the same period of the previous year is due to both the purely organic growth (up € 7.4 million equal to + 9.6%) and the change in the scope of consolidation. The latter takes account, for an amount of around € 15.2 million, of the revenues resulting from the acquisitions of stand fitting activities carried out last year (FB international in the US in March and Prostand – Colorcom in Italy in September 2018) and the arithmetic sum (with balance close to zero) of multiyear events or held in a different half from that of the previous year.

In particular, the Group’s “core business”, comprised of the direct organisation of trade show events, accounted for 53.7% of total revenues during the half, and recorded an increase of 6.6% compared to the previous year. This increase is attributable to the main leading products in the “Food & Beverage” and “Jewellery & Fashion” categories. The seasonal nature of the trade show calendar has a negligible impact and relates, in particular, to the Koinè event (biennial event in odd years) in February 2019.

The Convention Events business line, which accounts for 7.6% of total Group revenues, recorded an increase of 26% (up € 1.6 million) compared to the first half of 2018, thanks to the holding of larger conventions in terms of the number of participants, convention areas used and additional services required.

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Revenues from related services, such as stand fitting activities, catering and cleaning, account for 35.2% of the Group’s total revenues and essentially doubled compared to the first half of the previous year (+97.8%). The growth in the revenues from catering services, driven by the development of trade show events organised and the management of new activities, was augmented by the higher revenues recorded in the event preparation services segment as a result of the already mentioned acquisitions.

Business outlook

The results achieved by IEG in the first half, although it should be noted that trade show and convention event activities are highly seasonal in nature, with the subsequent difficulty in comparing the various quarters of the year with one another, confirm the success of the organisational and management decisions made by the Company and allow the management to confirm the planned consolidation and growth objectives.

The Corporate Officer responsible for drafting the company’s accounting documents, Roberto Bondioli, hereby declares, pursuant to paragraph 2 of art. 154-bis of the Consolidated Law on Finance, that the accounting information contained in this press release corresponds to the documentary results, the books and the accounting records.

The Half-yearly Financial Report as at June 30th, 2019, approved on today’s date by the Board of Directors of Italian Exhibition Group S.p.A., will be made available, together with the Independent Auditors’ Report, on the Company’s website www.iegexpo.it in the Investor Relations Section, as well as in the company’s registered office and on the authorised storage system 1INFO Storage available at the address www.1info.it managed by 1INFO – Computershare S.p.A. – Via Lorenzo Mascheroni 19, 20145 Milan.

The results of the first half of 2019 will be illustrated in a conference call with the Financial Community set for today at 17.30 (CET). The presentation will be available in the Investor Relations section of the website www.iegexpo.it from 17.15.

FOCUS ON ITALIAN EXHIBITION GROUP SPA

Italian Exhibition Group (IEG), listed on the Milan Stock Exchange organized and managed by Borsa Italiana S.p.A., is the Italian leader in the organization of trade expos and one of the main players in Europe in the expo and conference sector, with its venues in Rimini and Vicenza. The IEG Group stands out for the organization of events in five categories: Food & Beverage; Jewellery & Fashion; Tourism, Hospitality & Lifestyle; Wellness, Sports and Leisure; Green & Technology. In recent years, IEG has launched an important process of foreign expansion, also by means of joint ventures inked with local players (e.g. in the United States, Arab Emirates and China). IEG ended the 2018 financial year with a total consolidated turnover of 159.7 million euros, an EBITDA of 30.8 million and a net consolidated profit of 10.8 million euros. In 2018, IEG held an overall total of 53 exhibitions organized or hosted and 181 conferences events in its Rimini and Vicenza expo and conference venues.

MEDIA CONTACT: ITALIAN EXHIBITION GROUP S.P.A. Investor Relator Roberto Bondioli |roberto.bondioli@iegexpo.it | +39 0541 744642 Press Contact Elisabetta Vitali |Head of media relations & corporate communication | elisabetta.vitali@iegexpo.it | +39 0541 744228

SITA: Tracking airline passenger bags drives 66% improvement in baggage delivery

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Airlines that are adding tracking at more points of the baggage journey are enjoying a huge improvement in bag delivery globally. The SITA 2019 Baggage IT Insights – officially launched at an event in Abu Dhabi International Airport today – shows that where tracking is done at check-in and loading onto the aircraft, the rate of improvement is as high as 66%.

These results come as the record drop in the baggage mishandling rate achieved globally over the past decade plateaus, with the rate steady at around 5.7 bags per thousand passengers over the past three years. In 2018, the rate was 5.69 per thousand passengers.

Over the past year, an increasing number of airlines and airports have started to introduce tracking at key points in the journey – check-in, loading onto the aircraft, transfers and arrival – to improve baggage management and further reduce the chances of a bag being mishandled. SITA’s research provides the first glimpse of the success of this tracking. It reveals that where bags were being tracked when loaded onto the aircraft, the rate of improvement ranged between 38% and 66% depending on the level of tracking introduced.

Peter Drummond, Director of Baggage at SITA, said: “While the mishandling rate has started to plateau over the past few years, this comes against a continued growth in passenger numbers and their bags. In 2018, 4.36 billion travelers checked in more than 4.27 billion bags. More bags makes things more challenging. Everyone across the industry needs to look beyond the process and technology improvements made in the past decade and adopt the latest technology such as tracking to make the next big cut in the rate of mishandled bags.”

Ahmed Juma Al Shamsi, Acting Chief Operations Officer at Abu Dhabi Airports, said: “For our passengers the timely delivery of baggage is key to ensuring a seamless passenger experience and therefore an area in which we continue to make further improvements. Looking forward, baggage tracking is fundamental to driving more accurate bag delivery not only at Abu Dhabi International Airport but across the entire passenger journey. We have led the way with the introduction of tracking on arrival and we have already seen significant improvements.”

Transferring baggage from one aircraft, or airline, to another remains a pinch point in the journey and in 2018 it was again the main reason for bags being mishandled. Transfer bags accounted for 46% of all mishandled bags.
Drummond added: “Transfer is by far the most difficult stage to track a bag as there are multiple airlines and airports involved. However, data from this year’s report shows that tracking at key points in the journey, such as transfers, will go a long way to eliminating mishandling and will allow airlines and their passengers to keep tabs on where their bags are at every step of the way.”

Over the past decade, total number of mishandled bags per annum has plummeted 47% from 46.9 million in 2007 to 24.8 million in 2018, while the annual bill footed by the industry has shrunk 43% to $2.4 billion, down from $4.22 billion in 2007.

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Expression of interests launched for new carrying-capacity studies for La Digue, Mahe and Praslin

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The Seychelles Ministry for Tourism, Civil Aviation, Ports and Marine have recently launched 2 expression of interests for carrying capacity studies to be undertaken on La Digue as well as Mahe and Praslin. The aim of the studies is to determine the current status of the islands and the acceptable amount of tourism development that can occur while still remaining sustainable, and assist the government in taking informed decisions on all future tourism development projects.

The Carrying-Capacity Study for La Digue dates back to 2013 and the results have led to the policy directive of setting a moratorium on the development of tourism accommodation establishments to 5 rooms per developer. This moratorium is supposed to be valid for a period of five years and the time has come to commission a new Carrying-Capacity Study.

Moreover, in 2018 the President announced that La Digue would be a model of sustainability as part of the National Vision 2033.  An eco-tourism strategy specific to the island for the next 15 years has been developed and the Carrying-Capacity Study on La Digue will aim to align with the established vision and provide recommendations to policy makers pertaining to future development on the island in view of assuring its sustainable development.

As for Mahe and Praslin, the Carrying-Capacity Study was commissioned in 2016 and set to be reviewed in 2020.  The results of the Carrying-Capacity Study has led to a number of policy directives and a set moratorium on the number of rooms that can be developed per promoter which is 20 rooms for Northern Mahe and 24 rooms per promoter for  the rest of Mahe and Praslin.

The carrying-capacity analysis will determine the ability of the ecosystem of La Digue, Mahe and Praslin and the various segments thereof to withstand all impacts of additional tourism development activities. The studies will apply the perspectives of Physical carrying capacity, Ecological carrying capacity, Social carrying capacity and Economic carrying capacity in order to develop a balanced overall assessment.

Consultants interested to undertake the study have to submit their expression of interest to the Department of Tourism by Friday, April 26, 2019 by 1500 hours. Results of the two carrying capacity studies will determine whether or not to maintain the moratorium currently in place on La Digue, Mahe and Praslin.

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Hawaii hotels: Flat average daily rate, lower occupancy so far in 2019

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For the first three months of 2019, Hawaii hotels statewide reported flat average daily rate (ADR) and lower occupancy, which resulted in lower revenue per available room (RevPAR) compared to the first quarter of 2018.

According to the Hawaii Hotel Performance Report published by the Hawaii Tourism Authority (HTA), statewide RevPAR declined to $236 (-3.3%), with ADR of $292 and occupancy of 80.8 percent (-2.7 percentage points) in the first quarter of 2019.

HTA’s Tourism Research Division issued the report’s findings utilizing data compiled by STR, Inc., which conducts the largest and most comprehensive survey of hotel properties in the Hawaiian Islands.

For the first quarter, Hawaii hotel room revenues fell by 4.7 percent to $1.13 billion compared to the $1.18 billion earned in the first quarter of 2018. There were more than 74,300 fewer available room nights (-1.5%) in the first quarter and approximately 190,500 fewer occupied room nights (-4.7%) compared to a year ago. Several hotel properties across the state were closed for renovation or had rooms out of service for renovation during the first quarter.

All classes of Hawaii hotel properties statewide reported RevPAR declines in the first quarter of 2019 except Upper Midscale Class properties ($134, +0.6%). Luxury Class properties reported RevPAR of $452 (-5.4%) with ADR of $594 (-1.2%) and occupancy of 76.1 percent (-3.3 percentage points). At the other end of the price scale, Midscale & Economy Class hotels reported RevPAR of $155 (-5.0%) with ADR of $187 (-0.5%) and occupancy of 83.1 percent (-3.9 percentage points).

Comparison to Top U.S. Markets

In comparison to top U.S. markets, the Hawaiian Islands earned the highest RevPAR at $236 in the first quarter, followed by the San Francisco/San Mateo market at $210 (+15.9%) and the Miami/Hialeah market at $208 (-3.5%). Hawaii also led the U.S. markets in ADR at $292 followed by San Francisco/San Mateo and Miami/Hialeah. The Hawaiian Islands ranked fifth for occupancy at 80.8 percent, with Miami/Hialeah topping the list at 83.0 percent (-2.1 percentage points).

Hotel Results for Hawaii’s Four Counties

Hotel properties in Hawaii’s four island counties all reported RevPAR decreases in the first quarter of 2019. Maui County hotels led the state overall in RevPAR at $337 (-2.7%), with ADR at $428 (-0.9%) and occupancy at 78.6 percent (-1.5 percentage points).

Kauai hotels earned RevPAR of $228 (-10.2%), with flat ADR at $305 (+0.2%) and lower occupancy of 74.8 percent (-8.7 percentage points).

Hotels on the island of Hawaii reported a decline in RevPAR to $225 (-9.7%), due to a combination of decreases in both ADR ($285, -2.0%) and occupancy (79.1%, -6.7 percentage points).

Oahu hotels earned slightly lower RevPAR at $196 (-0.9%), with ADR at $236 (+0.8%) and occupancy of 83.0 percent (-1.4 percentage points).

Comparison to International Markets

When compared to international “sun and sea” destinations, Hawaii’s counties were in the middle of the pack for RevPAR in the first quarter of 2019. Hotels in the Maldives ranked highest in RevPAR at $575 (+4.5%) followed by Aruba at $351 (+11.2%). Maui County ranked third, with Kauai, the island of Hawaii, and Oahu ranking sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively.

The Maldives also led in ADR at $737 (+5.2%) in the first quarter, followed by French Polynesia at $497 (-1.1%). Maui County ranked fifth, followed by Kauai and the island of Hawaii. Oahu ranked ninth .

Oahu trailed Phuket (84.5%, -6.3 percentage points) in occupancy for sun and sea destinations in the first quarter. The island of Hawaii, Maui County and Kauai ranked fourth, fifth and ninth, respectively.

March 2019 Hotel Performance

In March 2019, RevPAR for Hawaii hotels statewide declined to $227 (-4.3%), with ADR of $285 (-1.1%) and occupancy of 79.6 percent (-2.7 percentage points).

In March, Hawaii hotel room revenues fell by 5.9 percent to $373.3 million. There were more than 27,200 fewer available room nights (-1.6%) in March and approximately 66,850 fewer occupied room nights (-4.9%) compared to a year ago. Several hotel properties across the state were closed for renovation or had rooms out of service for renovation during March. However, the number of rooms out of service may be under-reported.

All classes of Hawaii hotel properties statewide reported RevPAR declines in March. Luxury Class properties reported RevPAR of $443 (-7.2%) with ADR of $583 (-3.1%) and occupancy of 75.9 percent (-3.4 percentage points). Midscale & Economy Class hotels reported RevPAR of $150 (-2.9%) with ADR of $182 (+0.8%) and occupancy of 82.0 percent (-3.1 percentage points).

Hotel properties in Hawaii’s four island counties all reported lower RevPAR for March. Maui County hotels reported the highest RevPAR in March at $336 (-1.4%) with ADR of $421 (-1.6%) and flat occupancy (79.8%, +0.2 percentage points).

Oahu hotels reported lower occupancy (80.4%, -2.3 percentage points) and flat ADR ($230, -0.2%) for March.

Hotels on the island of Hawaii continued to face challenges in March, with RevPAR dropping 11.2 percent to $216, ADR to $272 (-4.9%) and occupancy to 79.2 percent (-5.7 percentage points).

RevPAR for Kauai hotels fell to $213 (-14.6%) in March, with declines in both ADR to $286 (-4.5%) and occupancy to 74.4 percent (-8.8 percentage points).

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Mediterranean Resort & Hotel Real Estate Forum returns to Greece

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Now in its fifth year, the Mediterranean Resort & Hotel Real Estate Forum (MR&H) will return to Greece for the second year in succession this October. The event, hosted by Questex, is dedicated to the investment, development and operation of resorts and hotels within the Mediterranean region. This niche, but highly specialized area, comprises various elements; hotel, residential, marinas, health clubs, children’s activities, retail, sports facilities, F&B, all of which need to be carefully woven together with seamless operation to create a successful resort.

The conference will be held at the Hilton Athens on the 29-31st October 2019. A fitting venue for Hilton’s celebration of 100 years in hospitality and the continuation of the premise that the group was founded on; “travel can make the world a better place”.

The dynamic growth of tourism in Greece continues to boost investment activity throughout the country and throughout the wider Mediterranean region. Speaking at MIPIM last month, Secretary General for Tourism Policy and Development George Tziallas said; “Half of all funding under Greece’s 2016 development law has been channeled into tourism ventures, while more than 400 investment plans have been submitted in the last three years to the tourism ministry for approval.”

This statement is supported by data recently released by Horwath HTL during the International Hotel Investment Forum (IHIF) which revealed Greece is a prime investment opportunity for international hotel chains as only 1.7% of total units currently operate under an international brand. Results from the joint investor sentiment survey from Tranio and IHIF showed Greece listed as one of the European countries that is most attractive for hotel real estate investment.

Stakeholders from leading operators including Thomas Cook, Club Med and Nobu attend the event alongside investors from KSL, Starwood Capital Group and Dolphin Capital all recognizing the value of coming together as a collective to debate, converse and discuss.

Registration for MR&H 2019 is now open and delegate tickets can be purchased at the best value Early Bird rate until the end of May.

Enterprise Greece have pledged their continued support for MR&H and Grigoris Stergioulis, Chairman & CEO at Enterprise Greece said in relation to the ongoing collaboration; “Building on the success of the event last year, the positive working relationship with Questex and the significant opportunities that exist for investors in the Greek hotel market, we’re thrilled to once again partner with MR&H and look forward to welcoming the event to Greece for the second year.”

Alexi Khajavi, Managing Director of EMEA Hospitality + Travel Group, Questex said; “The tourism and hospitality prosperity that Greece is enjoying is leading to significant activity from serious investors and developers. As a conference host, our role is to facilitate these meetings, connections and interactions in an environment that is educational and energizing. With the continued support from Enterprise Greece, Hilton providing the setting, and amongst very encouraging industry data, we’re confident that MR&H will prove to be an event not to be missed for those currently active or keen to do business within the Mediterranean resort and hotel space”.

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