The average prices of hotel rooms around the world rose by 2 percent during the first six months of 2013, according to Hotels.com’s latest Hotel Price Index (HPI), which tracks prices hotel guests paid for their accommodations around the world. Although the rise is relatively small, the average prices are now approaching the same level as 2006, before the world financial crisis. Reports showed Latin America experienced the biggest change with a 7 percent increase in hotel prices, while the sluggish economy in Europe only led to a 1 percent gain. Asia was the only region to experience a fall of 2 percent, due largely to booming outbound travel from China. Overall hotel prices are stabilizing throughout the world, showing that the world economy is indeed picking up, Hotels.com said.

(yorimcha@heraldcorp.com)