In the CEE region, 2020 was a record year for industrial and logistic investment volumes with around EUR 3.3 bln transacted accounting for a 32 pct share of the total annual volumes according to ‘The CEE Industrial Scene 2020-2021’ published by Colliers International.
By the end of 2020, the total transaction volume reached a record high of 5.4 million sqm – a record for Poland’s market. The highest tenant activity was seen in Warsaw (1.2 mln sqm in three zones) and Upper Silesia (1.07 mln sqm), which saw a 79 pct growth in demand over 2019. The regional markets that were also marked by an increase in popularity in 2020 included Western Poland, where 265,000 sq m was leased (compared to 40,000 sqm in 2019), Bydgoszcz/Toruń (139,000 sqm compared to 55,000 sqm) and Kraków (150,000 sqm compared to 77,000 sqm).
Maciej Chmielewski director in Poland of industrial and logistics agency at Colliers international
The pandemic has had a notable impact on overall CEE investment activity in 2020, with total volumes ending 24 pct below those of 2019. However, this did not stop interest from investors in the APAC region targeting industrial and logistics assets. Capital from the APAC region, specifically from Singapore, China and South Korea, secured a 52 pct share of industrial volumes. This was followed, some way behind, by the EMEA with 16 pct and the US with 14 pct. Vacancy rates across the region came to 5.9 pct.