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Mumbai, April 23, 2026: Knight Frank, the leading independent global property consultancy today launched its landmark 20th edition of The Wealth Report 2026, which reveals a dramatic acceleration in global wealth creation despite substantial geopolitical uncertainty, concerns over rising interest rates and uneven economic performance. The world’s ultra-high-net-worth1 individual (UHNWI) population increased to 713,626 in 2026 adding 162,191 since 2021 when the population count was at 551,435 – adding an average of 89 new UHNWIs every day in the last five years.

Mumbai, April 23, 2026: Knight Frank, the leading independent global property consultancy today launched its landmark 20th edition of The Wealth Report which reveals a dramatic acceleration in global wealth creation despite substantial geopolitical uncertainty, concerns over rising interest rates and uneven economic performance. The world’s ultra-high-net-worth individual (UHNWI, USD 30m+) population increased by 162,191 between 2021 and 2026 – equivalent to 89 new UHNWIs every day – bringing the global total to 713,626.

Chennai, April 23, 2026: Knight Frank, the leading independent global property consultancy, in its landmark 20th edition of The Wealth Report 2026, highlighted that Chennai now accounts for 4.8% of India’s ultra-high-net-worth (UHNW) population. This marks a rise from 1.3% in 2015 to 4.8% in 2025. On a global scale, the ultra-high-net-worth individual (UHNWI) population (USD 30 mn+) grew by 162,191 between 2021 and 2026—adding the equivalent of 89 new UHNWIs every day. This takes the total global UHNW population to 713,626.

Bengaluru, April 23, 2026: Knight Frank, the leading independent global property consultancy today launched its landmark 20th edition of The Wealth Report. According to Knight Frank’s Prime International Residential Index (PIRI) Tracker: How much prime property does USD 1mn buy?, Monaco retains its position as the world’s most expensive prime residential city in 2025, where with USD 1mn, one can purchase just 16 square meters (sq m) of prime residential space, followed by Hong Kong (23 sq m) and Geneva (28 sq m).

This year’s edition of The Wealth Report reveals how private capital is adapting to a fractured geopolitical landscape, seeking agility, targeting value‑add opportunities and responding to significant shifts in real estate markets

KEY TAKEAWAYS

  • The “flight-to-quality” movement that was evident in the previous quarters seem to have tapered off, which was supported by the lack of new supply of premium office buildings and strong occupancies of existing buildings.
  • According to data compiled by Savills, the vacancy rate for CBD Grade A offices dipped by 0.1 of a percentage point (ppt) quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) to 6.6% in Q1/2026. This was the second consecutive quarter of decline and the lowest since Q3/2024 when vacancy was at 6.1%.
  • The limited supply pipeline and low vacancies of premium offices enabled landlords to have strong holding power and increase the asking rents. As such, average CBD Grade A office rents continued to rise for the eighth consecutive quarter by 0.6% QoQ to S$10.02 per sq ft in Q1/2026.
  • Although geopolitical tensions remain high, the low vacancy levels and a low new supply environment is shoring up Grade A CBD office rents. Considering all these points, we have revised our rental forecast for 2026 upward, from 2% to a range of 3%–5% year-on-year (YoY) growth. Gross rents could receive additional upward support should energy costs rise further, and landlords pass these increases through to tenants.

Australia’s living sectors present strong opportunities for institutional capital, driven by sustained undersupply, record migration, and rising rental demand across student housing, build-to-rent, and co-living. These dynamics are supporting rental growth, high occupancy, and scalable investment platforms that offer stable, inflation-aligned income streams. At the same time, healthcare real estate and ageing-related assets offer long-term, multi-decade demand, reinforcing Australia as a compelling market for patient capital seeking resilient returns.

The fragile Iran-US ceasefire announced April 8th sparked a sharp risk-on rally, though uncertainty over the agreed terms and continued disruption to Strait of Hormuz shipping warrant near-term caution. China’s rumoured role as a mediator is a constructive development. A credible resolution that restores oil flows should disproportionately benefit Asian risk assets. Separately, weaker U.S. growth, partly driven by higher oil acting as a demand tax, may prompt Fed easing later in 2026, an additional tailwind for Asian equities and currencies.

Japan is the most near-term eventful market. BOJ rate hike expectations for the April 27–28 meeting are live (~50–60% probability), though we favour a summer move pending wage data and conflict resolution. We do not expect a hike to materially re-rate J-REITs negatively, given investor familiarity with the hiking cycle and rising real incomes. Tokyo office fundamentals remain exceptionally tight (8% YoY rent growth, 2.2% vacancy), and major developer FY March 2026 results/guidance are the key upcoming catalyst. J-REIT underperformance in Q1 likely reflects fiscal year-end selling pressure from Japanese institutions rather than fundamental deterioration.

Australia faces a split RBA (last decision 5:4), that may not need to tighten as aggressively as feared if supply-driven inflation produces demand destruction. Residential-exposed names Stockland and Mirvac trade at multi-year discounts, a sharp re-rating is possible if macro data softens. Goodman Group is expected to upgrade full-year guidance; Scentre Group’s guidance appears conservative and could surprise positively.

Singapore & Hong Kong both enter reporting season with solid underlying operating trends, though the conflict introduces risk. Singapore residential has been resilient; S-REIT data centre names remain a notable anomaly, underperforming sharply versus US peers (DCREIT +2.4% vs. Digital Realty +22.4% YTD) despite strong fundamentals and attractive yields. MAS is expected to allow SGD appreciation to manage inflation, keeping domestic rates contained. In Hong Kong, Q1 transactions rose 46% YoY to 23,300 units, but an inventory overhang and a crowded launch pipeline introduce demand air-pocket risk if geopolitical sentiment deteriorates. Large-cap developers (SHK +46% YTD, +111% YoY) have run hard; risk-reward is less compelling at current levels.

Key near-term catalysts: BOJ MPM (Apr 27–28), Japan CPI (Apr 24), RBA decision (May, TBC), major developer earnings

Here are the key takeaways from the recent APREA Singapore Conference, where industry leaders and experts explored market trends, capital flows, and emerging opportunities in real assets. While the discussions acknowledged near-term uncertainties, the overarching sentiment focused on positioning for the next phase of growth. These highlights capture the core themes currently shaping investment strategies across the region.

ASIA PACIFIC DATA CENTRE MARKET OVERVIEW

Asia Pacific continued its sharp growth, adding about 1,557MW of capacity to its operational stock during 2025. The development pipeline also increased by 5,033MW during the same period. Despite the sharp increase in operational stock, the vacancy declined from 12.4% in H2 2024 to 10.9% in H2 2025 reflecting strong demand for digital infrastructure in the Asia Pacific region.