Blantyre Hotels shows recovery signs
Malawi Stock Exchange (MSE)- listed Blantyre Hotels Limited (BHL) is showing signs of recovery, having posted a 157 percent increase in revenue in the six-month period ended September 30 2021.
A financial statement for the period the hotel published on Wednesday shows that revenue grew to K847 million, with hotel occupancy averaging 28.5 percent.
However, the company’s cost of sales increased by 38 percent to K475 million, registering a loss of K285 million compared to the K524 million loss registered in the same period last year.
“The group incurred net finance charges of K238 million during the period attributable to the loan facility obtained for the Lilongwe hotel project.
The group obtained a K3.5 billion loan in the period for the Lilongwe project which was used to pay for the land consideration and other costs.
“As the world starts opening up and operating under the new normal due to the unprecedented impact of the global pandemic, we believe that we are steadily adapting to and moving past the tough period,” reads the statement signed by BHL Hotels Limited Board Chairperson Emily Makuta.
The performance resonates with a recent trading statement published by another MSE-listed hospitality unit Sunbird Hotels Limited which indicates that the company is poised to post a 150 percent increase in profit.
Ina recent interview, Malawi Tourism Council Chairperson Jones Malili said players in the sector remained upbeat.
“Business was bad between January and March but we saw a pick-up from the second quarter to the last. Business has been fair and good. Businesses that closed in the year 2020 managed to reopen; the hosting of the Sadc summit contributed a lot to the performance of the industry.
“The major challenge was Covid, especially when countries employed travel bans. 2022 looks promising; we have the vaccines and most businesses have put up measures to enhance vaccine uptake and other Covid measures which assures us of a positive trajectory,” Malili said.
