Aberdeen Asset Management carried out EUR 330 mln of property transactions on behalf of its funds and discretionary mandates in 2011.
Aberdeen Asset Management carried out EUR 330 mln of property transactions on behalf of its funds and discretionary mandates in 2011.
The office sector accounted for 83% of the transactions, followed by 9% for retail and 5% for industrial and logistics assets. Transactions in other segments accounted for 3% of the volume. Norway and Denmark saw the highest activity, Aberdeen said.
Aberdeen's preliminary estimates indicate that transaction volumes for the entire Nordic region fell from EUR 20.2 bn in 2010 to EUR 19.2 bn in 2011.
After sound activity growth in the first half of the year, the market slowed down after the summer. In particular the fourth quarter, which normally is very busy, recorded a lower than expected transaction volume except for the Danish market, which experienced a very strong end of 2011 due to a handful of very large single deals, the fund manager noted.
Tonny Nielsen, Nordic head of investment management, said, 'Looking ahead, as many European countries struggle with weak state finances, investors might find that the Nordics is a safer haven to invest in than most other Western countries.
'In the medium term, we believe strong public finances will lead to a higher economic growth potential in the Nordics in comparison to the eurozone. We forecast an annual GDP-growth rate of 1.8% for the Nordic region in the period 2012-2016, compared to 1.3% for the eurozone. This translates into stronger rental growth forecasts and higher total return forecasts.'
Aberdeen manages some EUR 9 bn of property assets in the Nordic region.
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