2024-05-06 28Hse Editor
Before the fifth wave of the new crown epidemic broke out in Hong Kong, the overall Grade A office leasing market was still active. Jones Lang LaSalle's latest "Hong Kong Real Estate Market Watch" report pointed out that a positive absorption of 647,100 square feet was recorded in January. The overall market vacancy rate fell back to 9.4% at the end of January. The vacancy rate in Central fell from 8% to 7.7%, and the vacancy rate in Kowloon East was 12.4%, still the highest among the major sub-markets. ◆reporter Liang Yueqin
Benefiting from the recovery of leasing demand and the realization of pre-leased floor space for new supply, the office leasing market recorded positive absorption for four consecutive months. Tenants still continue to look for high-quality office space. The most notable transaction in January was the lease of 40,600 square feet (GFA) of Kwun Tong City East by logistics service provider FedEx to consolidate its office space in Kowloon East.
A-building rents rose 0.2% last month
The improvement in leasing demand supported overall Grade A office rents, which climbed 0.2% in January after rising 0.2% month-on-month in December last year, said Yale Pao, head of JLL's Hong Kong leasing business. Among the major submarkets, Central, Tsim Sha Tsui and Kowloon East all recorded slight rental increases. Even though various sectors of Hong Kong have made special work arrangements again in response to the increase in the number of infected people, the impact on office buildings will be less than the impact on the initial stage of the epidemic in 2020. The bank believes that the leasing demand of office buildings will improve after the epidemic stabilizes.
Industrial building leasing continues to be active
In terms of the industrial building market, Huang Zhihui, head of JLL Greater China Research, said that the industrial leasing and investment market continued to be active in January. The rebound in merchandise trade has prompted many logistics center operators to look for additional floor space to seize growth opportunities. One of the major transactions was Hankyu Hanshin International Freight's lease of an additional 58,982 sq. ft. in SF Tower, Asia Logistics Center in Tsing Yi, to facilitate expansion; Hong Kong Airlines Logistics leased an additional full-floor floor in the currently leased Watsons Center in Kwai Chung. For expansion, involving 28,536 square feet.
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