Central faces tenant exodus in rents raceby Stella Zhai
Commercial property consultant Colliers International found in a survey that around 41 percent of current tenants in Central district, are considering relocating when their leases expire, with
Kowloon East and Island East being popular options.
Colliers surveyed 363 tenants from various sectors and found that rents on Hong Kong Island has increased 14.3 percent on average over the past three years, compared to 4.7 percent and 1.4 percent on average in Kowloon and the New Territories.
Meanwhile, the Greater Bay Area Initiative should drive net office expansion demand in Hong Kong, with 20 percent of the companies planning to increase the size of local operations, said the consultant.
Savills, another real estate adviser, believes the retail leasing market is slowing in tandem with retail sales, with mall rents little changed in the second quarter, while rents for prime street shops recorded falls of 1.9 percent.
Food, pharmaceuticals and cosmetics, with 3.1 percent year-over-year growth, are outperforming other retail sectors with one percent year-on-year increase in May, said Savills.
The firm believes that the retail market will see a quiet second half with no big headline deals.
Retail sales over the January to May period continued their steady decline, falling by 1.8 percent from a year ago.
Overall, rents on prime shopping streets fell by 1.2 percent quarter on quarter, with Central dropping the most at 3.8 percent over the past quarter.
The new mega bridge and express rail links brought a steady stream of same-day mainland visitors, but spending power has been affected by the weakening yuan, said Savills, and the Sino-US trade tensions are having a negative impact.
Source: The Standard
http://www.thestandard.com.hk/section-n ... 0705&sid=2
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