Jan. 28–SINGAPORE (The Straits Times/ANN) — Investments in Singapore hotels surged last year partly owing to the sale of The Westin Singapore, said property consultancy Savills in a report yesterday.

The total sum invested last year was S$2.45 billion (US$1.9 billion) — more than five times the S$467 million invested in hotels in 2012.

The biggest hotel deal last year was Japan-based Daisho Group’s S$468 million purchase of The Westin Singapore from BlackRock in December.

The purchase price translates into a steep S$1.5 million per room, which could be a new record for a hotel here.

The Westin Singapore is on the top floors of Asia Square Tower 2 at Marina Bay and opened its doors in November last year.

Its sale accounted for the bulk of the S$606 million worth of investment transactions in the fourth quarter, with only one other hotel sale that quarter.

For the full year, there were 11 hotel transactions islandwide.

The robust level of sales in Singapore’s hotel market stands in sharp contrast to the rest of South-east Asia, where hotel investment sales faltered last year.

Transaction volumes in South-east Asia excluding Singapore fell 24.3 per cent last year from 2012, to US$536.3 million. Deals were mainly in Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia.

However, the picture was rosier for the rest of Asia. Investment in Asia-Pacific hotels last year hit its highest level since 2007 at US$8.7 billion, Savills said.

It increased 23.4 per cent from US$7.1 billion in 2012.

Singapore investors accounted for 22.4 per cent of the total last year, at nearly US$1.96 billion.

“In Japan, Singapore and Australia, a large number of risk-averse investors are still focused on core markets and prime assets,” said Savills Research senior director Simon Smith.

Savills expects hotel investment volume in the Asia-Pacific region to grow to about US$9 billion this year.

Revenue per available room in Singapore grew in only the luxury segment last year, for the period from January to November, according to figures from the Singapore Tourism Board.

In contrast, the upscale, mid-tier and economy hotel segments suffered declining revenue.

*US$1 = S$1.27