On-going corporate caution resulted in subdued leasing activity in
Asia Pacific’s Tier 1 office markets in the third quarter this year,
according to a report from Jones Lang LaSalle.
The study noted
that while take-up rates of Grade A office space has slowed in most
markets, particularly in the financial centres of Singapore and Hong
Kong, positive take-up was seen in Tokyo and across the emerging
economies of Southeast Asia.
Net effective rents moderated in Q3,
with 11 of the 27 markets monitored posting quarterly increases, while
the remainder either stabilised or declined. Although this caused rents
to fall 0.2 percent quarter-on-quarter, growth was still up 0.8 percent
on a yearly basis.
Jakarta again recorded the highest quarterly
and annual rental increase across the region at 4.4 percent and 33
percent respectively.
The major financial centres of Singapore
and Tokyo also saw rents increase by 1.1 percent and 0.9 percent
respectively, while rents in Hong Kong stayed flat at 0.2 percent in the
quarter.
Jeremy Sheldon, Managing Director for Markets at Jones
Lang LaSalle, said: "We have started to see the beginnings of more new
activity and positive sentiment in the market, particularly in the core
financial centres."
"In Singapore, we have just witnessed the
first deal of over 100,000 sq ft completed in the CBD since mid-2011,
while Hong Kong is experiencing a similar uplift. Banks are becoming
more optimistic, particularly the medium-sized occupiers and the Chinese
banks with most insurance groups also looking to expand."
He
noted that the trend is particularly prevalent in China and India where
demand for office space is now showing positive upward movement.
"We
believe that this may be the first signs of some occupier confidence
returning to the market as we move into 2014," he added.
Nikki De Guzman, Junior Journalist at PropertyGuru, wrote this story. To contact her about this or other stories email nikki@propertyguru.com.sg
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