InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) has reported a 10% increase in operating profit to $665m (£499m) for the six months ended 30 June 2026, as revenue from reportable segments rose 7% to $1.26bn (£943m), adjusted EBITDA increased 11% to $1.39bn (£1.04bn) and global RevPAR grew 4.1%.

Revenue from the group’s fee business increased 7% to $971m (£728m), while IFRS total revenue rose 6% to $2.66bn (£1.99bn). Fee margin improved by 1.2 percentage points to 65.9%, supported by fee business revenue growth outpacing cost increases. Adjusted earnings per share rose 13% to 274.7 cents (£2.03), while IFRS operating profit increased 8% to $671m (£496.9m).

Profit before tax declined 9% to $578m (£428.0m), while profit for the period fell 9.4% to $425m (£314.7m), reflecting foreign exchange movements and higher financing costs.

Globally, RevPAR increased 4.1%, driven by 4.8% growth in the Americas, 3.0% in EMEAA and 3.1% in Greater China. Average daily rate rose 2.5%, while occupancy increased by 1.0 percentage point.

Within EMEAA, second-quarter RevPAR rose 3.1% in the UK, 2.3% in Continental Europe and 6.0% in East Asia and the Pacific, although trading in the Middle East was impacted by ongoing regional conflict.

IHG continued to expand its global footprint during the period, opening a record 31,500 rooms across 197 hotels. The group signed 49,196 rooms across 352 hotels, taking its development pipeline to 347,691 rooms across 2,385 hotels. Its global estate now comprises 7,109 hotels with more than 1.05 million rooms.

Regionally, revenue increased 4.1% to $584m (£432.4m) in the Americas, 6.3% to $391m (£289.5m) in EMEAA and 15.8% to $88m (£65.17m) in Greater China. Operating profit rose 6.5% to $442m (£327.3m) in the Americas, 10.2% to $141m (£104.4m) in EMEAA and 25% to $55m (£40.73m) in Greater China.

Looking ahead, IHG said it remains on track to meet full-year consensus profit and earnings expectations and reiterated its confidence in delivering its long-term growth strategy. The group also expects to return more than $1.2bn (£900m) to shareholders during 2026 through dividends and share buybacks.

Elie Maalouf, chief executive of IHG Hotels and Resorts, said: “Our diverse global footprint and better-than-expected demand in most markets around the world delivered strong RevPAR growth of 4.1% in the first six months of 2026. Trading in the US accelerated in the second quarter, growth in Greater China continued and a good performance elsewhere in our EMEAA region helped offset challenges in the Middle East.

“We remain on track to meet full year consensus profit and earnings expectations and are confident in the continued delivery of our long-term growth strategy.”