TAMPA - Demand for hotel rooms continued to decline locally, statewide and nationally in May compared with a year ago as the poor economy affected business and leisure travel, the latest Smith Travel Research report shows.

Rooms sold declined 10.6 percent in the Tampa-St. Petersburg area, 10.9 percent in Orlando, 8 percent throughout Florida and 9 percent nationwide, the Tennessee-based travel industry consultant reported.

Revenue per available room, a key industry measure, declined 16.8 percent in Tampa-St. Petersburg to $65.70 in May.

The average daily rate, determined by dividing revenue by the number of rooms rented, dropped in the local area from $118.79 in May 2008 to $112.58 this year.