EUROPE – Sweden has outstripped the UK as Europe's most liquid real estate market as it emerges as a 'safe haven' for European investors despite being only the eighth largest investment market with €108bn, according to DTZ.
Although the UK – more specifically, central London – remains the most attractive market for cross-border investors, it came in overall with 6% turnover compared with Sweden's 9.2%.
Norway ranked second with turnover of 7.6%, although it attracted no activity from investors outside Europe.
DTZ attributed the Swedish market's performance to the speed of its recent recovery as a result of the relative resilience of its banking sector during the financial crisis.
Commercial real estate transactions in the Swedish market totalled around €10bn last year.
However, once European investors were excluded, the UK regained its status as Europe's most liquid market, accounting for €10bn of a total €14bn ploughed into central London assets.
Measured by inter-regional investment, Sweden (1.2%) ranked behind both Poland (1.6%) and the Ukraine (1.5%).
The data published this week suggest there is no automatic correlation between market size and liquidity.
France, the second most invested real estate market in Europe, ranked as only the 10th most liquid market with 3% turnover.
In its Fair Value Index, also published this week, DTZ awarded most Nordic markets a maximum score, along with Belgium, the Netherlands and the Baltic markets.
The quarterly index, which measures the attractiveness of pricing in European property markets, rated Finland, Norway and Denmark 'hot' – an indication that the company believes office, retail and industrial are more than 5% under-priced in those markets.
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