Investment in French commercial property has doubled

In Q1 2010, the market turnover has reached €1.8 billion. For comparison: the indicator amounted to €900 million in the corresponding period of the preceding year.

Local investors and German funds are still a dominant force on the market. The only exception is the sale of HSBC bank headquarters on the Champs Elysees to a Qatari investor (by the way, this deal has become the largest one inked over Q1, its value has worked out €425 million). Savills experts report of an increase in local investors’ activity in comparison to the preceding year, Europe Real Estate said.

In Q1 2010, retail properties have attracted 40% of total investments. For comparison: in Q1 2009 this figure worked out barely 12%.

The agency's specialists predict the turnover of French commercial property market to reach €10-12 billion by the end of 2010. In 2009 the figure amounted to €7.9 billion. Savills analyst, Lydia Brissey, claims that investors will primarily focus on the office market of Paris’s central business district, where the rents are expected to increase.