BENGALURU: Delhi-NCR is the sixth most expensive office space rental market across the APAC region, according to Knight Frank’s latest edition of the Asia-Pacific Prime Office Rental Index for Q3 2023. Hong Kong SAR continued to be APAC’s most expensive office market during the quarter.
Prime office rentals in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru remained strong in YoY terms while the rentals for the next 12 months are also expected to stay stable at current rates, the report said. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, the average rents across the region showed stability, with declines in the Chinese Mainland markets moderating.
This was counter-balanced by rental growth in most other developed markets. Overall, the quarterly report indicated that in line with Q2 2023, 15 of the 23 tracked cities reported either stable or increasing rents, similar to Q3 2023. Demand for office space in India’s largest occupier markets remained strong with over 700,000 sqm of office space leases during the quarter.
Strong occupiers demand for setting up Global Capability Centres (GCC) constituted most of the demand, which made up for slower demand from flex space operators. According to IT trade body Nasscom, India will have over 2,500 GCCs by the end of the decade, up from 1,580 now and a labour force that will more than double to 4.5 million.
Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director, Knight Frank India said, “The Indian economy’s relative strength remains a magnet for global corporate interest, evident in the resurgence of demand in the Indian office space market. Transaction volumes have increased, and rental rates have stayed steady in the three major occupier markets.”