1st Quarter Results

For Immediate Release 3 May 2012

MILLENNIUM & COPTHORNE HOTELS PLC

INTERIM MANAGEMENT STATEMENT

First quarter results to 31 March 2012

Highlights for the first quarter 2012:

·; Overall RevPAR (in constant currency terms) rose by 6.0% in the first quarter, primarily driven by an increase in average room rate.

·; On a like-for-like basis2 Group RevPAR grew by 5.6% (excluding the 3 Christchurch hotels, Copthorne Orchid and Stuttgart).

·; RevPAR in the key gateway cities increased. Like-for-like2 Singapore RevPAR rose by 7.7%, London by 7.0% and New York by 0.6%.

·; Like-for-like2total revenue in constant currency increased by 5.4% to £173.5m (2011: £164.6m) and headline operating profit increased by 20.7% to £25.7m (2011: £21.3m).

·; Strong cash flows from operating activities of £37.9m (2011: £20.9m). Net debt reduced from £100.2m at 31 December 2011 to £31.1m and gearing of 1.5% (31 December 2011: 4.8%).

Notes

1 Since the 2011 Annual Report, the definition of headline operating profit, one of the Group's key performance indicators, has been modified to include the share of tax, interest and non-controlling interests of joint ventures and associates. The Group believes that the revised definition simplifies the presentation of headline operating profit given to the reader on both the face of the consolidated income statement and in the segmental analysis of operating results.

2 Like-for-like, in constant currency terms, for Singapore excludes Copthorne Orchid (closed in April 2011 for development into condominiums) and for the Group like-for-like also excludes Group Millennium Hotel & Resort Stuttgart (lease expired in August 2011) and the three Christchurch hotels (closed in February 2011 due to earthquake damage).

Commenting today Mr Kwek Leng Beng, Chairman said:

"The Group's strong profit performance illustrates the strength of our business model, with a rate-driven sales strategy and cost discipline enabling revenue to flow to the bottom line with profit before tax increasing by 31.5% to £25.9m. Trading performance of the Group as a whole showed continuing progress in the first quarter, with a 6.0% constant currency increase in RevPAR and a 5.6% increase like-for-like2. Looking forward, we expect continuing healthy progress in London, Singapore and certain other Asian destinations and we are focusing on improving performance at our US properties.

Certain key hotels have delivered strong trading performances. In particular, the 21.6% RevPAR increase in Rest of Asia was underpinned by double digit growth in Seoul, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta and Beijing, with Seoul benefitting from its refurbishment in 2011.

With a strong balance sheet and gearing approaching zero, we are in a good position, both to continue investing in our property portfolio to improve returns and to grow the portfolio when we identify attractive strategic investment opportunities. We have been actively seeking such opportunities since the second half of last year, but vendors' price expectations in key gateway cities are still too high."

Enquiries

Millennium &Copthorne Hotels plc

Wong Hong Ren, Chief Executive Officer Tel: +44 (0) 20 7872 2444

Adrian Bushnell, Company Secretary

BengLan Low, Senior Vice President Finance

Peter Krijgsman, Financial Communications (Media)

CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT

Financial Performance

For the three months ended 31 March 2012 profit before tax increased by 31.5% to £25.9m (2011: £19.7m) buoyed by a strong trading performance in the Rest of Asia that saw RevPAR increase by 21.6%. Total revenue increased by 0.7% to £175.5m (2011: £174.2m).

Headline profit before tax, the Group's measure of underlying profit performance increased by 28.3% to £25.4m (2011: £19.8m). Headline operating profit increased by 23.2% to £27.1m (2011: £22.0m). Basic earnings per share increased by 26.7% to 5.7p (2011: 4.5p).

A number of factors affected year-on-year comparisons. These include the following:

·; Closure of the Copthorne Orchid on 1 April 2011, prior to its demolition and redevelopment of the site into a condominium complex;

·; Closure of the three Christchurch hotels following the New Zealand earthquake; and

·; Expiry of the lease in Stuttgart in August 2011.

Excluding all these factors, in constant currency, total revenue increased by 5.4% to £173.5m (2011: £164.6m) and headline operating profit increased by 20.7% to £25.7m (2011: £21.3m).

Financial Position

The Group strengthened its financial position over the three month period. Net debt fell to £31.1m at 31 March 2012 (31 December 2011: £100.2m). Gearing at the end of the first quarter was 1.5%, compared to 4.8% at the end of last year and 6.9% at 31 March 2011. At 31 March 2012 the Group had cash reserves of £388.0m (including £55.8m relating to the Glyndebourne development) and total undrawn committed bank facilities of £189.7m. Most of the facilities are unsecured with unencumbered assets representing 87.0% of our fixed assets and investment properties.

Asset Management

The Group is continuing to roll out the asset management strategy announced in August 2010, namely the upgrading and refurbishment of four premium destination hotels in Seoul, New York, Taipei and London. Good progress is being made as follows:

·; Successful results in Seoul, which is the only hotel to have completed a major part of its refurbishment to-date. The Millennium Seoul Hilton has seen a 17.1% increase in average room rate compared to the first quarter of 2011;

·; West wing of Millennium UN Plaza in New York was closed at the beginning of April 2012 for refurbishment and upgrading. Re-opening is planned in time for the UN General Assembly to be held in September 2012;

·; Renovation of guest rooms at Grand Hyatt Taipei, necessitating phased partial closure over the next two years, will commence in the third quarter of this year; and

·; Major refurbishment plans are being developed for Millennium Mayfair, appropriate to its status as our flagship London hotel.

Development of The Glyndebourne, a condominium project in Singapore, started in the second quarter of 2011, following closure of the Copthorne Orchid Hotel on 1 April 2011. The development is proving to have been well-timed, with sales contracts being concluded before the recent softening in this segment of the Singapore real estate market. Of the 150 apartments for sale since the end of October 2010, buyers have signed sales and purchase agreements for 144 units as at 16 April 2012 with sales value of S$522.5m (£260.5m), representing a price of over S$2,000 (£997) per square foot. Sales proceeds collected to date total S$157.7m (£78.6m) representing approximately 30% of the sales value. Revenue and development costs will appear in the income statement on completion, which is expected to be no later than 2015. Including land costs, development projects of this nature in Singapore typically attract an average profit margin of circa 20%.

Demolition work has begun on the site of the Group's planned 325-room deluxe hotel in the Ginza district of Tokyo. The site was acquired in September 2011. Construction of the hotel is expected to complete by 2014.

First Sponsor Capital Limited ("FSCL")

As at 29 April 2012, approximately 97% of the residential units of the Chengdu City Spring project have been sold either under sales and purchase or option agreements, with approximately 99% of the sales proceeds collected. Revenue of approximately US$107m (£67m) by FSCL was recognised in April 2012 with some additional US$4m (£3m) expected to be recognised in due course upon full collection of sales proceeds. Pre-tax development profit margin on the residential units is in excess of 40%. The Group expects to recognise circa US$14m (£9m) as its share of the profit after tax and non-controlling interests.

Approximately 73% of the Chengdu City Spring commercial units launched for sale in July 2011 have been sold either under sales and purchase or option agreements with approximately 74% of the sales proceeds collected. FSCL is expected to complete the commercial units in 2013 and plans to retain a proportion of commercial units as investment assets.

Proceeds from the residential and commercial sales will finance the development of a 195-room hotel, M Hotel Chengdu, which is scheduled to open next year as part of the Chengdu City Spring project. As one of the largest trade centres in western China, Chengdu, which is the regional capital of Sichuan province, is a highly favoured destination amongst foreign investors and business travellers.

In 2011, FSCL successfully tendered for two parcels of land in Wenjiang, Chengdu which is intended for residential and commercial development. Ground preparation works have commenced. FSCL is planning to launch its first residential phase in the fourth quarter of 2012.

Management

The Board is continuing its search for a Chief Financial Officer, which we hope to conclude in the current quarter. The new CFO will be based in London and will have a wide portfolio of responsibilities including finance and global risk management. The Board is conducting an exhaustive search for a candidate who combines such skills and experience with an understanding of our hotel operating and ownership business model. Below Board level, the Group has continued to strengthen the senior management team.

As previously announced, Richard Hartman is not seeking re-election as a non-executive director at today's annual general meeting and will retire from the Board at that time.

Pipeline

The Group's worldwide pipeline has 30 hotels offering 6,800 rooms, which are mainly management contracts.

Outlook

The Group is driving RevPAR growth in the current year through a mainly rate-led sales and marketing approach, combined with continuing cost discipline. Over the medium-term we will additionally grow RevPAR through the continuing roll-out of our asset management strategy.

While it is too early to predict the performance for 2012, trading to-date is in line with management expectations. On a like-for-like basis, Group RevPAR in the four weeks of April 2012 increased by 8.6% with London increasing by 8.3%, Singapore increasing by 6.2% and New York decreasing by 3.7% (up by 4.6% for New York if UN Plaza is excluded).

Kwek Leng Beng

CHAIRMAN

3 May 2012

Financial and Operating Highlights

Note

1. The Group uses a number of key performance indicators (KPI's) to measure performance and believes that headline EBITDA, headline operating profit, headline profit before tax, headline profit after tax and headline earnings per share, net debt and gearing provide useful and necessary information on underlying trends to shareholders, the investment community and are used by the Group for internal performance analysis. Since the 2011 Annual Report, the definition of headline operating profit, one of the Group's key performance indicators, has been modified to include the share of tax, interest and non-controlling interests of joint ventures and associates. The Group believes that the revised definition simplifies the presentation of headline operating profit given to the reader on both the face of the consolidated income statement and in the segmental analysis of operating results.

Reconciliation of these measures to the closest equivalent GAAP measures are shown above and in notes 3 and 8 to these financial statements.

Financial Performance

For the first quarter to 31 March 2012, profit before tax increased by 31.5% to £25.9m (2011: £19.7m).

Headline profit before tax, the Group's measure of underlying profit before tax, increased by 28.3% from £19.8m to £25.4m. Headline operating profit increased by 23.2% to £27.1m (2011: £22.0m).

Basic earnings per share increased by 26.7% to 5.7p (2011: 4.5p) and headline earnings per share increased by 22.2% to 5.5p (2011: 4.5p).

Taxation

The Group recorded a tax expense of £5.4m (2011: £4.2m) excluding the tax relating to joint ventures and associates.

The estimated annual effective rate applied to profit before income tax excluding the Group's share of joint ventures and associates profits is 28.9% (2011: 28.6%). The underlying annual effective rate (excluding the Group's share of joint ventures and associates) is 30.6% (2011: 29.8%).

A tax charge of £1.1m (2011: £0.7m) relating to joint ventures and associates is included in the reported profit before tax.

Earnings per share

Basic earnings per share was 5.7p (2011: 4.5p) and headline earnings per share increased to 5.5p (2011: 4.5p). The table below reconciles basic earnings per share to headline earnings per share.

PERFORMANCE BY REGION

For comparability, the following regional review is based on calculations in constant currency whereby 31 March 2011 average room rate and RevPAR have been translated at average exchange rates for the period ended 31 March 2012.

UNITED STATES

New York

RevPAR increased by 0.6% to £97.91 (2011: £97.35) for the first quarter. Occupancy was the driver for this growth showing a 1.3 percentage point increase to 75.6% (2011: 74.3%) while rate fell by 1.1% to £129.45 (2011: £130.95). All the growth came from Broadway which in addition to strong occupancy growth also saw modest rate growth. Lack of demand on the east side of New York, plus the transfer of an airline crew contract to Broadway prior to renovation, impacted the UN Plaza.

Regional US

RevPAR decreased by 2.3% to £29.65 (2011: £30.35) for the first quarter. This decrease was a result of lower occupancy, down 1.7 percentage points to 48.8% (2011: 50.5%), partially offset by higher rate up 1.2% to £60.75 (2011: £60.04). RevPAR growth for the quarter in Chicago, Boston and Minneapolis was offset by declines in Cincinnati, Anchorage, Buffalo and Maingate Lakeside Resort (formerly Best Western Lakeside). The Group is focused on improving Regional US performance such as cost restructuring in St Louis and Cincinnati.

EUROPE

London

RevPAR in London grew by 7.0% to £82.96 (2011: £77.52). This increase was driven by a 2.8% increase in rate to £107.88 (2011: £104.95) and an increase in occupancy of 3.0 percentage points to 76.9% (2011: 73.9%). RevPAR increases were experienced in all hotels with the exception of Knightsbridge which is in the process of a shift into a higher yielding market segment.

Rest of Europe

Quarter one RevPAR fell by 5.4% in the rest of Europe region to £43.31 (2011: £45.76).

Regional UK

Regional UK remains a challenge with RevPAR falling by 3.3% to £37.16 (2011: £38.42). This was despite strong double digit RevPAR growth in Manchester and Aberdeen. Most hotels saw a reduction in RevPAR, particularly the two Gatwick hotels and Newcastle. Average rate fell by 1.9% to £58.67 (2011: £59.83) and occupancy decreased by 0.9 percentage points to 63.3% (2011: 64.2%).

France & Germany

RevPAR increased by 4.8% to £60.20 (2011: £57.47). On a like-for-like basis, which excludes Stuttgart where the lease expired on 31 August 2011, RevPAR increased by 5.9% to £60.20 (2011: £56.86). Within the region on a like-for-like basis, average rate increased by 1.8% to £92.15 (2011: £90.53) while occupancy increased by 2.5 percentage points to 65.3% (2011: 62.8%), primarily as a result of improved performance at Paris Opera.

ASIA

RevPAR increased by 17.1% to £77.00 (2011: £65.73) driven by an 11.8% increase in average room rates to £99.20 (2011: £88.74) and an increase in occupancy of 3.5 percentage points to 77.6% (2011: 74.1%). The two quarters are not directly comparable due to the closure of Copthorne Orchid in Singapore. On a like-for-like basis RevPAR increased by 14.1% to £77.00 (2011: £67.51).

Singapore

Singapore reported an 18.4% increase in RevPAR to £102.43 (2011: £86.53). On a like-for-like basis, excluding the Copthorne Orchid, Singapore RevPAR increased by 7.7% to £102.43 (2011: £95.11). Every hotel in Singapore increased both its occupancy and rate with a 4.5% increase in rate to £116.18 (2011: £111.23) and a 2.7 percentage point increase in occupancy to 88.2% (2011: 85.5%).

Rest of Asia

RevPAR for the rest of Asia increased by 21.6% to £60.90 (2011: £50.07). This increase was driven by rate, which increased by 14.9% to £85.85 (2011: £74.74) and by occupancy, which increased by 3.9 percentage points to 70.9% (2011: 67.0%). Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta, Seoul and Beijing all saw double digit RevPAR growth. Seoul which was being refurbished in Q1 2011 saw 66.6% growth in RevPAR as a result of rate increasing by 17.1% and occupancy increasing by 24.7%.

AUSTRALASIA

For the New Zealand group, RevPAR at £43.04 was 8.0% down on last year (2011: £46.76). RevPAR excluding the three Christchurch hotels that were closed following an earthquake was down 5.0% from last year at £43.04 (2011: £45.30); occupancy declined by 1.8 percentage points to 72.8% (2011: 74.6%) and rates fell by 2.7% to £59.15 (2011: £60.77) as a result of a slowdown in tourism to New Zealand.

Of the three Christchurch hotels that were closed following the earthquake, Copthorne Hotel Christchurch City was demolished following a settlement with the insurers and owners in 2011. The two others, namely the Millennium Hotel Christchurch and Copthorne Hotel Christchurch Central still remain closed. Management is still awaiting the structural engineering reports as these hotels remain inaccessible. The impact on the two hotels cannot yet be reasonably quantified and consequently no provision for asset write-off has yet been made. Both hotels are insured for material damage and business interruption.

Financial Position

Financial structure

Group interest cover ratio, excluding share of results of joint ventures and associates, other operating income and expense, non-operating income and separately disclosed items of the Group improved to 12.2 times from 7.7 times in Q1 2011. The decrease in net finance cost of £0.5m principally reflects interest on additional cash generated by the Group.

At 31 March 2012, the Group had £388.0m cash and £189.7m of undrawn and committed facilities available, comprising revolving credit facilities which provide the Group with financial flexibility. Most of the facilities are unsecured with unencumbered assets representing 87.0% of fixed assets and investment properties. At 31 March 2012, total borrowing amounted to £419.1m of which £84.1m was drawn under £113.9m of secured bank facilities.

Future funding

Of the Group's total facilities of £656.6m, £190.7m matures in the nine months to 31 December 2012 comprising £37.4m committed revolving credit facilities, £103.4m of uncommitted facilities and overdrafts subject to annual renewal, £42.9m unsecured bonds and £7.0m secured term loans. Plans for refinancing the maturing facilities are underway.

Consolidated income statement (unaudited)

for the three months ended 31 March 2012

The financial results above derive from continuing activities.

Consolidated statement of comprehensive income (unaudited)

for the three months ended 31 March 2012

Consolidated statement of financial position (unaudited)

as at 31 March 2012

Consolidated statement of cash flows (unaudited)

for the three months ended 31 March 2012

Consolidated statement of changes in equity (unaudited)

for the three months ended 31 March 2012

Notes to the consolidated financial statements (unaudited)

1. General information

Basis of preparation

The first quarter results for Millennium & Copthorne Hotels plc ('the Company') to 31 March 2012 comprise the Company and its subsidiaries (together referred to as 'the Group') and the Group's interests in joint ventures and associates.

The first quarter results were approved by the Board of Directors on 3 May 2012.

The financial information set out in this interim management statement does not constitute the Group's statutory accounts for the quarter ended 31 March 2012. Statutory accounts for 2011 will be delivered to the registrar of companies following the Annual General Meeting to be held on 3 May 2012. The auditors have reported on those accounts; their reports were (i) unqualified, (ii) did not include a reference to any matters to which the auditors drew attention by way of emphasis without qualifying their report; and (iii) did not contain a statement under section 498(2) or (3) of the Companies Act 2006.

Whilst the financial information included in this interim management statement has been prepared in accordance with IFRS as adopted by the EU, this statement does not itself contain sufficient information to comply with all disclosure requirements of IFRS. Information contained in this statement relating to the year ended 31 December 2011 has been extracted from the full IFRS compliant Annual Report and Accounts that was approved on 21 February 2012.

The results have been prepared applying the accounting policies and presentation that were used in the preparation of the Group's published consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2011 and which were prepared in accordance with IFRS as adopted by the EU. The consolidated financial statements of the Group for the financial year ended 31 December 2011 are available from the Company's website www.millenniumhotels.com/corporate/investor_relations/financiallibrary.html.

Since the 2011 Annual Report, the definition of headline operating profit, one of the Group's key performance indicators, has been modified to include the share of tax, interest and non-controlling interests of joint ventures and associates. The Group believes that the revised definition simplifies the presentation of headline operating profit given to the reader on both the face of the consolidated income statement and in the segmental analysis of operating results. Comparatives in the consolidated income statement and operating segment information for 31 March 2011 and 31 December 2011 have been restated to reflect the change in definition.

The financial statements are presented in the Company's functional currency of sterling, rounded to the nearest hundred thousand.

Non-GAAP information

Presentation of headline operating profit, headline EBITDA, headline profit before tax, headline profit after tax and headline earnings per share

Reconciliation of headline operating profit, headline EBITDA, headline profit before tax, headline profit after tax and headline earnings per share to the closest equivalent GAAP measures are provided in note 3 'Operating segment information', note 7 'Earnings per share' and note 8 'Non-GAAP measures'.

Net debt and gearing percentage

An analysis of net debt and calculated gearing percentage is provided in note 8 'Non-GAAP measures'.

Like-for-like growth

The Group believes that like-for-like growth which is not intended to be a substitute for or superior to, reported growth, provides useful and necessary information to investors and interested parties for the following reasons:

·; it provides additional information on the underlying growth of the business without the effect of factors unrelated to the operating performance of the business; and

·; it is used by the Group for internal performance analysis.

Notes to the consolidated financial statements (unaudited)

2. Foreign currency translation

The Company publishes its Group financial statements in sterling. However, the majority of the Company's subsidiaries, joint ventures and associates report their revenue, costs, assets and liabilities in currencies other than sterling. The Company translates the revenue, costs, assets and liabilities of those subsidiaries, joint ventures and associates into sterling, and this translation of other currencies into sterling could materially affect the amount of these items in the Group financial statements, even if their values have not changed in their original currencies. The following table sets out the sterling exchange rates of the other principal currencies of the Group.

3. Operating segment information

Disclosure of segmental information is principally presented in respect of the Group's geographical segments.

Segment results, assets and liabilities include items directly attributable to a segment as well as those that can be allocated on a reasonable basis. Unallocated items principally comprise: interest-bearing loans, borrowings, cash and cash equivalents, net finance expense, taxation balances and corporate expenses.

Geographical segments

The hotel and property operations are managed on a worldwide basis and operate in seven principal geographical areas as follows:

·; New York

·; Regional US

·; London

·; Rest of Europe (including the Middle East)

·; Singapore

·; Rest of Asia

·; Australasia

The segments reported reflect the operating segment information included in the internal reports that the Chief Operating Decision Maker ("CODM"), which is the Board, regularly reviews.

The reportable segments are aligned with the structure of the Group's internal organisation which is based according to geographical region. Discrete financial information is reported to and is reviewed by the CODM on a geographical basis. Each operating segment has a Chief Operating Officer ("COO") or equivalent who is directly accountable for the functioning of the segment and who maintains regular contact with the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the CODM to discuss the operational and financial performance. The CODM makes decisions about allocation of resources to the regions managed by the COOs.

Notes to the consolidated financial statements (unaudited)

3. Operating segment information (continued)

Notes to the consolidated financial statements (unaudited)

3. Operating segment information (continued)