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Hotel room rates in New York are soaring for the first time in three years and are far outpacing gains posted in other major markets.
In all but one of the last five months, the average hotel rate in the city has posted double-digit gains over the same month of last year. In September, the most recent month for which data is available, the average price of a room hit $222-a gain of more than $19 over last year's level. So far this year, rates in the city have risen by nearly 8%nearly double the 4% hike seen in Los Angeles, and hugely outpacing the less than 1% rise posted in Chicago.
"The corporate business is bouncing back, and that's driving a lot more demand in New York," says Tim Henthorn, a vice president at TravelClick Inc., which tracks the hotel industry.
The strong rebound in room prices comes at a crucial time for New York hotel executives, who are in the midst of negotiating corporate rates for next year.
"It's been a long time since we've been able to jump our corporate rate significantly," says Rose Genovese, vice president of Affinia Hospitality, which operates...