Industrial warehouse rents in Hong Kong grab crown as Asia's most expensive

Followed by Singapore and Tokyo.

Although the global job market’s growth remains lacklustre, demand for industrial warehouse space and modern distribution centres around the world remains strong, according to Colliers International’s Global Industrial Midyear 2013 Highlights Report released today. 

London, Hong Kong and Singapore have taken the lead in industrial warehouse rents, while almost all industrial buildings worldwide are fully occupied. In Asia, Hong Kong lead the pack as having the most expensive industrial warehouse rents, followed by Singapore and Tokyo.

Based on local currencies, the six-month rental change in Asia’s most-expensive industrial warehouse markets – Hong Kong, Singapore and Tokyo – ranged between 0% and 3.9% as they withstood downward adjustment pressures.

Industrial warehouse rents in Asia are being bolstered by the imbalance between supply and demand for quality industrial logistics properties, says Simon Lo, Executive Director of Research & Advisory, Asia at Colliers International. There has been only a limited supply of new quality logistics warehouses in most markets at a time when third-party logistics operators are actively seeking highquality logistics properties to capture current opportunities to grow their  businesses. 

“The overall demand for logistics real estate remains solid in Asia, despite slower-than-expected GDP growth in a number of the region’s economies and slackening demand for imports in western ones.

Resilient private expenditure in a number of Southeast Asian countries is seen as a key driving force behind the demand for quality logistics properties, especially those catering to local distribution,” Lo explains.