Property Investment In Asia Pacific Jumps 20% In Q1
ASIA PACIFIC – Data from Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL) showed that real estate investment in Asia Pacific increased sharply by 20 percent in Q1 2022 on an annual basis, with a total of US$40.8 billion invested in the region, reported The Edge on Friday afternoon (13 May, SGT).
Notably, the top recipients of capital were Singapore, South Korea, and Australia.
In particular, Singapore attracted US$5.7 billion in commercial property investments during the first three months of the year. This translates to a whooping investment growth of 134 percent year-on-year and represents the highest growth in the commercial sector in the Asia Pacific (APAC) region during the period under review, said the property consultancy.
As for South Korea, real estate investment there surged by 89 percent year-on-year to US$8.2 billion, with the capital going to various asset types, namely office, retail, logistics, and industrial properties.
Meanwhile, Australia registered US$4.7 billion in property investment, translating to a growth of 49 percent. One of the most favoured commercial real estate there was office space.
On the other hand, property investment in Japan fell 26 percent year-on-year in Q1 2022. Despite the contraction, the Country of the Rising Sun remained one of the strongest investment markets in the region.
Meanwhile, China’s real estate investment performance during the first three months of the year was flat, with overall volumes hitting US$8.3 billion.
Nonetheless, property investors were upbeat towards retail and office properties, as well as logistics and industrial assets. JLL is also bullish on the prospects of Asia Pacific’s real estate market.
“We are optimistic that the region’s real estate sector will withstand rising interest rates and growing uncertainty. We are still seeing intense competition for assets and maintain our projection of over US$200 billion in direct investment into Asia Pacific for 2022,” said Stuart Crow, Chief Executive for capital markets for Asia Pacific at the real estate consultancy.
“[Investors] have demonstrated in the first quarter their confidence in spreading capital across geography and sector. In the coming months, momentum will shift towards logistics and industrial as supply comes to market, and funds will increasingly focus on income resilient sectors,” added Pamela Amber, Head of investor intelligence and strategy for Asia Pacific at JLL.
