IHG to double China presence by 2015

InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG; IHG.NYSE, IHG.LSE) said it expects its Greater China operations – which cover the mainland, Taiwan and Hong Kong – to grow larger than its business in the US by 2025, the South China Morning Post reported. IHG, which currently has the largest China presence among international hotel companies, is embarking on a five-year expansion drive. The hotelier plans to add 149 projects to its current portfolio of 137 hotels in China over the next five years. The expansion will boost its total rooms in China from the current 47,000 to 96,000, though the company wants that number to top 360,000 by 2030. IHG currently operates four brands – InterContinental, Crowne Plaza, Holiday Inn and Holiday Inn Express – in the country. On Thursday it also launched an upscale boutique hotel, Indigo, in Shanghai.