Prices, rents of industrial space slip further in Q4: JTC

THE upcoming supply of industrial space this year is expected to exert further downward pressure on occupancy rates, said JTC on Thursday.

In a market report on industrial space, JTC pointed out that prices and rents of industrial space continued to fall in tandem with occupancy rates, slipping 1.5 per cent and 1.1 per cent respectively in the fourth quarter from the preceding quarter.

This translated into a 1.7 per cent fall in prices and 2.1 per cent decline in rents for the whole year, JTC said.

Transaction volumes of industrial properties in the fourth quarter were also half the level seen a year ago, and more than 85 per cent lower than three years ago, based on the number of caveats lodged for industrial properties.

Reiterating that there is "ample space options available for industrialists", JTC pointed to an increase of 1.6 million sq m in total stock of industrial space last year, which included 450,000 sq m of multiple-user factory space.

This year, it is estimated that some 2.9 million sq m of industrial space, which includes 616,000 sq m of multiple-user factory space, will come onstream, significantly higher than the average annual supply and demand of around 1.7 million sq m and 1.2 million sq m during the past three years.

For industrialists looking to own production space, there are around 2,100 units in uncompleted strata-titled developments still available for sale at end-2015, JTC added. These units span 606,000 sq m of space or 6 per cent of existing multiple-user factory space.