Topic
Hong Kong ranks as the world's most expensive high-street retail destination with average rent of US$4,327 per sq ft per annum, surpassing New York, Paris, London and Tokyo by a substantial margin, according to the latest research from CBRE.
Hong Kong has, thankfully, passed on its world crown to New York, but cost of shops is still too high in city recovering from pandemic.
Return of mainland tourists does not mean business as usual for city retailers, who must think outside the box as circumstances change.
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Dubai is shaping up to be a new favourite for buyers, thanks to a booming real estate market and fast-track residency scheme, agents say. It handed out 158,000 ‘golden visas’, dwarfing the 13,000 that Portugal has issued since 2012.
Hong Kong residents fill their shopping trolleys and tummies in Shenzhen while Singaporeans hop across to Johor Bahru as they make the most of cheaper prices, denting the stability of their retail sectors.
Hong Kong is missing out on an office investment boom in the Asia-Pacific region this year as a supply glut and high vacancy rates put investors off the segment, according to analysts.
Hoka, the running shoe brand known for its thick soles, is opening two stores in Hong Kong this year as it ramps up its presence in Asia amid a fitness and health boom.
Louis Vuitton is returning to Times Square, three years after the French luxury brand shut its store, a sign of a brighter outlook for Hong Kong’s luxury retail market.
Hong Kong’s economic recovery is slowly filling up retail spaces, pushing vacancy rates to a three-year low. The rebound, however, is bypassing the northwestern part of the city in Yuen Long and Sheung Shui.
‘It’s overall a pretty outstanding location, and pretty outstanding locations will be successful,’ Christian Ulbrich says.
The proposal to buy Far East Shopping Centre fell through after a firm linked to Du failed to get approval from the Urban Redevelopment Authority.
The city’s commercial real estate market recovered partially in the first quarter of 2024 and is gearing up for further stabilisation this year as a rebound in consumption and policy support drive demand for leasing and investment, analysts say.
The 99-room The Opposite House, the group’s first hotel, will close after 16 years to make way for an ‘innovative retail landmark’ in the Taikoo Li Sanlitun area.
Retail and travel industry representatives say authorities should draw up strategies to support retailers through the mega-event economy and other initiatives.
Trends are likely to cap any rental gains in the retail property segment, where recovery will proceed in a gradual manner, analysts say.
Over the past two years, Japanese businesses have been the most active among foreign firms in terms of leasing retail spaces in Hong Kong, according to data compiled by JLL.
Harbour City and Times Square owner’s full-year 2023 profit fell 3 per cent to US$767.3 million even as revenue jumped 7 per cent. The company hopes to overcome headwinds through promotional activities with the Hong Kong government.
Watchmaker opens new multistorey shops in Central, Tsim Sha Tsui even as government predicts drop in tourism spending in 2024.
New World Development has agreed to sell its shopping centre and parking spaces in Tsuen Wan to Chinachem Group for US$510 million, speeding up asset sales to trim its financing costs.
Hong Kong’s largest family-owned lender said its non-performing loans in mainland China dropped by 0.47 percentage points to 2.68 per cent at the end of 2023 compared with the first half, as its overall exposure to troubled Chinese property developers shrank.
Commercial premises will need to step up and cover a huge predicted deficit of EV charging stations, while the recycling and storage of EV batteries may spur demand for industrial and warehouse space, the property consultancy says in a report.
The church has secured several floors at the property at 413-423 King’s Road as its ‘future permanent home in Hong Kong’, it said in a statement on its website.
The F&B sector, which contributed nearly half of Hong Kong’s retail leasing demand last year driven by new Chinese restaurants, will continue to be the biggest source of demand in 2024 as well, according to CBRE.
Jingyu Catering Group has leased nearly 6,000 sq ft in Peter Building at HK$341,000 (US$47,650) per month, according to an industry source. The rental outlook for high-street shops is improving.
Investment in Hong Kong property fell by 28 per cent to HK$37 billion (US$4.73 billion) last year, its lowest level since the 2008 financial crisis, but is expected to rise to HK$50 billion in 2024, Colliers says.
Retail property markets in China’s first-tier cities showed signs of improvement in the last quarter of 2023, fuelled in part by improved consumption, and the growth momentum is likely to continue this year.
Hong Kong’s luxury retail market is likely to regain some lost ground in 2024, say observers, as high-end brands return after an exodus sparked by 2019’s street protests and three years of pandemic restrictions.
As the pioneering independent watch boutique turns 10, we sat down with founder Piano Chow to talk about independent watchmakers, working with H. Moser & Cie and F.P. Journe, and what true collectors are really looking for
China’s biggest sportswear maker Li Ning’s purchase of a US$282 million mixed office and retail building to house its headquarters in Hong Kong, is a shot in the arm for the city’s slowing office property market.
