Cushman & Wakefield released an extensive report on office space markets this week and noted relatively subdued activity in the heart of the Chinese city.
Hong Kong is a crucial global hub for banking and financial services companies. Many saw their operations and profits decline considerably in 2011 as European economies struggled to maintain growth and deal with their public debt problems.
Among the long list of global ramifications for commercial property markets was relatively restrained demand for new office space in Hong Kong. However, the city remained the most expensive place in the world to rent Grade A office space.
“The Hong Kong office market, especially the activity in Central, was very much affected by the credit crisis in Europe in the second half of 2011,” said John Siu, executive director in Hong Kong for Cushman & Wakefield.
“Banking and finance occupiers, in particular, have become very cautious about their office expansion and relocation plans. As a result, landlords are now more willing to offer additional rental incentives to retain tenants in their buildings and attract new tenants,” he said.
However, elsewhere in China, the story was different. Rising demand pushed up prices significantly in Shanghai and particularly in Beijing over the course of 2011.
Second on the list of the world’s most expensive office space markets behind Hong Kong was London’s West End, where Cushman noted a lack of high-quality premises being made newly available for rent.
Another headline-grabbing shift in office market trends highlighted by the new report was that the cost of renting offices in Beijing exceeded the typical prices paid in New York City.
Editor’s notes: In Q2 2026, total net absorption in Hong Kong reached 492,000 square feet, as leasing demand from the financial sector remained robust and pushed the Central district vacancy rate down to 8.8 per cent.
The overall Grade A vacancy rate stood at 13.1 per cent.
A lack of new supply, combined with positive net absorption, drove the citywide vacancy rate down.
Demand for Grade A space in Central was expected to stay firm through 2026, supported by a strong IPO pipeline and mainland wealth inflows. Central Grade A rents were therefore forecast to rise 10-15 per cent over the year.
Net effective rents in Central at the end of the second quarter of 2026 were HKD 48.0 per square foot per month.
The UK officially left the European Union on January 31st 2020, in a process termed ‘Brexit’.
Trading links between the UK and Hong Kong have evolved significantly post-Brexit as the UK sought independent global trade ties, with bilateral merchandise trade reaching £14.9 billion in 2025, marking a 25.8 per cent increase from 2024.