Hilton shares jump in New York Stock Exchange debut

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Shares in the hotel group Hilton jumped 8% above their $20 offering price after their stock market debut on Thursday.

The company raised $2.35bn as part of its initial public offering, making it the biggest share sale by a hotel firm ever.

That amount beats Twitter's public share sale earlier this year.

Hilton is the world's largest hotel firm. It had been taken private in 2007 by private equity firm Blackstone Group.

The share sale comes at a time when the global economy is showing signs of recovery and there has been a pick up in the travel industry.

Hotel room rates and occupancy levels have been rising and are expected to rise further in the coming months.

That has helped Hilton generate good investor interest in its share offering. The firm sold 5 million shares more than it had initially said it would.

Hilton's hotel brands include Conrad, Waldorf Astoria, Doubletree, Embassy Suites, Homewood Suites, Home2Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Hampton Inn, and Hilton Grand Vacations.