(Reuters) -Holiday Inn owner Intercontinental Hotels Group ( IHG ) posted a 2.6% rise in first-quarter room revenue on Friday, helped by its performance in Japan, Australia, Europe and the Middle East.

"There was an impressive performance in EMEAA, which was up nearly 9%," CEO Elie Maalouf said in a statement, referring to Europe, the UK, Australia, the Middle east and Japan.

Room revenue was up 16.9% in Japan, 10.2% in Australia, 7.4% in the Middle East and 6.2% higher in Continental Europe.

The owner of the Regent and Crowne Plaza hotel chains said its occupancy was up 2 basis points and the gross system size growth was up 5%.

(Reporting by Chandini Monnappa and Yadarisa Shabong in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)