The real value-added (VA) of the hotels and restaurants sector grew by 2.5 per cent in the previous three quarters, lower than the 5.1 per cent growth registered in the first three quarters of 2007 (Exhibit 1). The slower growth was largely due to the hotels segment of the sector. While the catering index (a proxy for the performance of the restaurants segment) continued to register positive growth during this period, the number of room lettings of gazetted hotels (a proxy for the real growth of the hotels segment) has been in decline since the fourth quarter of 2007.

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