French commercial real estate investment volumes remained firm during the first three months of 2013, according to new figures released by property adviser Savills.
French commercial real estate investment volumes remained firm during the first three months of 2013, according to new figures released by property adviser Savills.
In total some €2.5 bn was invested in French commercial real estate during the first quarter of 2013, equal to the volume registered for the same period in 2012.
The market was boosted by increased investment volumes in both the retail and serviced property sectors, which rose year-on-year by 119% and 85% respectively. The two sectors accounted for four of the seven deals in excess of €100 mln recorded during the first three months of the year.
The French office sector remained dominant with €1.4 bn invested in total, accounting for 55% of all transactions. The figure represents a year-on-year decrease of 26%, which Savills attributes in part to a growing investor trend to diversify portfolios.
Savills predicts that market activity will remain steady across the year as a whole. Head of investment at Savills France Boris Cappelle said: 'Investors are keeping to their long-term strategies and continuing to prioritise core assets. We expect to see steady market activity over the coming months and forecast an investment volume of between €5 and €6 bn in France for H1'.
