Thought Leadership

Institutional investors have continued to pose faith in the Indian real estate sector despite the global headwinds, including uncertainty over economic growth and geopolitical tensions. The rise in investment inflow is an indication of the growth opportunities as India continues to emerge as a bright spot among international markets.

The country’s property sector has attracted over USD 2.9 bn/USD 2,939 mn worth of investments across 22 deals during H1 2023. The average deal size of investments increased by 17% to USD134 mn compared to USD115 mn, an aggregate of 2022, according to JLL. The investment pattern continues to be robust and is expected to cross USD 5 bn in CY 2023, which has been the annual trend pre-covid and in 2022.

Key highlights of the report:

• H1 2023 witnessed significant increase in domestic capital to 44% share of the total investment compared to 18% in 2022
• Office sector remained the most favoured sector with a major share of 66%
• Residential sector attracted investments of USD 512 mn across nine deals in H1 2023
• Warehousing attracted investment of USD 366 mn i.e.,80% higher than H1 2022
• USD 2,792 mn of platform commitment announced across 4 deals in H1 2023 to be invested in the next few years
• Successful listing of India’s first retail REITs with 81% anchor contribution by major domestic insurance companies, mutual funds, and pension schemes

As Singapore exits the pandemic and business activity returns to normal, corporate occupiers are placing more emphasis on employee productivity and on increasing office utilisation. With workplace transformation underway, there is strong demand to adapt and “build a better office” to meet the fast-evolving needs of employees and senior management. Additionally, occupiers should be actively identifying new opportunities and strategies to future-proof their portfolios.

CBRE's 2023 Singapore Office Occupier Sentiment Survey features insights from occupiers across various industries such as financial services, technology, media, telecoms and professional services etc.

Key findings include:

• Singapore's median utilisation rate stands at 64% and this is expected to increase further over the next 6 to 12 months.
• Leasing sentiment remains cautious in near term with more opting for lease renewals and re-negotiations but 45% expect to grow their corporate portfolios over next 3 years.
• Strong demand for green buildings but amount of green premium remains low. 67% would be willing to pay a premium of less than 5%.
• Staff-to-desk sharing ratios set to increase as more companies adopt flexible seating and hybrid working. 67% plan to increase desk sharing ratios over the next 2 years.

This report was originally published in https://www.cbre.com.sg/insights/viewpoints/2023-singapore-office-occupier-sentiment-survey

• In Q1 2023, the industrial rental and price indices continued their tenth consecutive quarter of growth. The rental index rose by 2.8% QOQ, accelerating from 2.1% QOQ in the previous quarter, and marking the strongest quarterly growth since Q3 2013. Similarly, industrial prices rose by 1.5% QOQ, slowing slightly from the 1.7% QOQ registered last quarter.
• With a remaining supply of 10.3 mil sq ft in 2023, and an average of 10.9 mil sq ft from present till 2025, higher supply will continue to moderate rental and price growth but may also provide more options for occupiers.
• Industrial indicators remain soft, with continuous contractions recorded in manufacturing output, NODX and PMI.
• Trade tensions have resulted in industry players looking to fortify supply chains, with some looking to set up shop in Singapore, which will continue to prop up industrial demand.

Rents in the region fell at a faster clip in Q2 2023, maintaining a year-long downward trend as Knight Frank’s Asia-Pacific Prime Office Rental Index dipped by a fourth consecutive quarter, down 1.6% quarter-on-quarter, in Q2 2023. This brings annual decline to 3.1%, which were largely due to continued soft conditions in the Chinese Mainland.

15 out of the 23 tracked cities reported stable-to-increasing rents, down from 16 in Q1 2023. Vacancies also rose marginally by a quarter of a percentage point quarter-on-quarter to 13.8%, sustaining a trend that has seen the metric rise to its highest in over 10 years since Q4 2022.

However, seen in the context of a delivery of over 4 million sf during the quarter, office demand in Asia-Pacific has held up better than those in US and Europe, with a stronger return-to-office trend. With tech occupiers continuing to rationalise employee headcount, financial and professional services firm as well as flexible space operators have made up the slack in leasing activity. Demand was also supported by a flight-to-quality trend that has pervaded across the region.

With the region entering a development phase, new supply in 2023-24 will clock in at cyclical highs, near doubling the levels in 2022, which will add close to 10% to existing stock. Consequently, market conditions across most of the region will continue to favour tenants for the rest of the year.

This report was originally published in https://apac.knightfrank.com/office-highlights