A total of 39 million square metres (sq m) of shopping centre space is currently under construction across the world’s major cities, representing a three million sq m increase from 2013, according to the latest research from global property advisor CBRE.
The development activity of shopping centre space around the world is focused in China. Indeed, more than half of the shopping centre space under construction in the 180 countries surveyed is taking place within China’s borders. Shanghai takes first position with 3.3 million sq m of space under construction – more than the combined total of all 86 European cities excluding those in Russia and Turkey. Just behind Shanghai is Chengdu with 3.2 million sq m followed by Shenzhen and Tianjin with 2.7 million sq m and 2.5 million sq m under construction respectively.
Other markets in the top ten include Istanbul, Wuhan, Moscow, Beijing, Nanjing, and Guangzhou.
In Southeast Asia, nearly 40% of the 3.3 million sq m under construction is located in Kuala Lumpur, making it the 12th most active market globally. In Vietnam, Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi have also seen a large number of new developments in suburban areas and are seeing strong leasing demand from retailers attracted by lower rents and the lower-to-mid income residences nearby.
Buoyant occupier demand is pushing a strong development pipeline in New Delhi with 500,000 sq m of new retail space currently under construction.
In the Middle East, Abu Dhabi continues to strengthen its position as a leading retail destination with three centres (168,000 sq m) completed in 2013 and another eight centres (778,000 sq m) currently under construction.
In Europe, Russian and Turkish cities continue to dominate the development pipeline. The most active market in Europe is Istanbul with 27 centres (1.9 million sq m) currently under construction. As in other markets, much of this new space is away from the city centre in peripheral locations.
Moscow leads the development for Russia with 1.5 million sq m of space due to open over the next three years.
However, development activity is also at an all-time high in regional cities, such as St Petersburg, Yekateringburg, Samara, and Novosibirsk, with some 2.6 million sq m due for completion in 2014 alone.
Natasha Patel, EMEA Retail Research, CBRE, commented: “Global development activity is similar to last year in terms of location with new construction dominated by Asia and in particular China. The scale of new development there is due not only to economic growth in the region, but also due to the demands of cross-border retailers, many of whom have found that the existing retail space in the region is not of the standard they require.”
Of the 35 new centre openings in Europe in 2013, 26 were in Eastern Europe, with only four in Central Europe and just five in Western Europe. Although new shopping centre development remains at historically low levels in much of Western Europe, many larger centres have extensions planned to accommodate the strong occupier demand for the best retail destinations around Europe.
Maryna Gavrylenko, Head of research, affiliate office of CBRE in Ukraine, commented: “As compared to some selected capitals of CEE countries, Kyiv preserved the leading position in terms of volume of new supply during the last two years of providing retailers with more opportunities to expand. With the delivery of five shopping centers in Kyiv, new supply reached approximately 121,900 sq m by the end of 2013, which was 30% higher compared to the previous year’s figure. The aggregate shopping centre development pipeline in Kyiv continued the growing trend on the back of relative stability of the retail sector vs. other sectors. So far, 475,000 sq m of quality retail space within six shopping centers currently under construction is scheduled for completion in 2014, which is the highest annual level of forecasted completions ever recorded on the market”.
