Investment in UK shopping centres reached £1.9 bn (€2.2 bn) in the first half of 2013, more than double the volume in the same period last year.
Investment in UK shopping centres reached £1.9 bn (€2.2 bn) in the first half of 2013, more than double the volume in the same period last year.
The sector saw £808 mln transacted in the first half of 2012, according to data released by Cushman & Wakefield.
The biggest news of Q2 was Hermes and M&G Real Estate’s asset swap. Hermes, advised by Cushman & Wakefield, swapped the Friary Centre in Guildford for M&G’s 36% share in the centre:mk in Milton Keynes, bringing the centre:mk fully under Hermes’ control. The combined price of the transaction was £338 mln.
Cushman & Wakefield also advised Future Fund on the sale of its 33% share of The Bullring in Birmingham. Future Fund sold its stake to Hammerson and CPPIB for £307 mln, or a net initial yield of 5.25%. Ownership of the shopping centre is now split between Hammerson, Henderson and CPPIB.
Other centres currently under offer include 50% of the Queensgate Shopping Centre in Peterborough, The Mall in Sutton Coldfield and Mell Square in Solihull. In total there are 20 schemes currently under offer with a combined value of £1 bn.
Cushman & Wakefield has been involved in £1.1 bn of shopping centre transactions so far in 2013, giving the firm a 60% market share. In addition, it is selling the two biggest centres on the market at the moment: Bon Accord in Aberdeen at £200 mln and St Enoch in Glasgow at £170 mln.
