Skift Take

Today’s podcast looks at Airbnb’s rather normal earnings, IHG’s strong showing, and the state of global travel stocks.

Rashaad Jorden

Good morning from Skift. It’s Wednesday, August 7, and now here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today. 

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Episode Notes

Airbnb’s second-quarter earnings revealed the company’s growth slowed down in several key areas, writes Executive Editor Dennis Schaal.

The company forecasts that guests are making bookings with shorter lead times, and it is seeing “some signs of slowing demand from U.S. guests.” Airbnb said that in the third quarter, it expects a “sequential moderation” in year-over-year nights and experiences booked compared with the 9% growth in the second quarter.

But Schaal notes Airbnb can point to many positives during the second quarter, including an increase in active listings from 7 million last year to 8 million.

Next, InterContinental Hotels Group said it’s not seeing signs of weakening demand outside of China, reports Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill. 

IHG CEO Elie Maalouf said the company hasn’t been impacted by a possible recession yet. IHG added the post-pandemic tourism surge has moderated and normalized to pre-Covid levels. The company reported a 3% rise in its revenue per available room — a key industry metric — during the first half of this year. 

While IHG saw its revenue per available room fall by 2.6% in China, O’Neill notes that drop didn’t dramatically impact its overall performance. 

Finally, travel stocks were the best performers on a bad day overall for the broader U.S. stock market this Monday. However, travel has been the worst performing group of stocks over the past year, making it one of the sectors most vulnerable to a recession, writes Head of Research Seth Borko. 

Borko notes concerns about a recession are clear in the performance of the Skift Travel 200, our own index of travel stocks. Cruise lines have been the best performing travel sector in 2024, followed by accommodations. Even though these businesses outperformed their travel peers, there is still no major travel subsector in the green so far.