Vienna and Hamburg record strong increases in prime rents

Vienna, Hamburg and London registered strong increases in prime rents over the six months to end-March, according to the latest research from Colliers International.

Prime rents rose 14% in Vienna, 12% in Hamburg and 11% in the UK capital. The Baltic cities of Riga and Tallinn as well as Manchester (11%) and Edinburgh (9%) also saw rental growth.

These performances were in stark contrast to most markets in the Europe, Middle East and Africa region (EMEA) where there was no change or only minor fluctuations.

At the opposite end of the scale, Greece and Bulgaria saw the biggest falls, with prime rents in Athens and Sofia dropping 12% and 20% respectively. The story in these markets has been one of continuous decline since Q3 2010, the report said.

Shopping centre prime rents in the majority of monitored markets also remained stable. The most significant increases in terms of both six and twelve month periods were recorded in Glasgow (11% and 18%), Moscow (8% and 23%) and Belgrade (8% and 17%).

Cairo's rents fell a dramatic 24% due to the uncertainty surrounding Egypt’s political and economic situation, with both occupiers and investors awaiting June's election results before committing to the market.