DIFFICULT ENVIRONMENT, LEADING ASSET CLASS
Transaction activity on the retail and overall commercial investment market was decisively impacted by a number of external factors in the first quarter, which led to a very subdued market activity. The challenging financing environment and consequently the persistent price finding process resulted in very few transactions being registered, especially in the single-deal segment. Therefore, the investment volume on the retail investment market at the beginning of the year fell by 26% year-on-year and 41% long-term to around €1.5 billion. Nevertheless, retail assets performed at a comparable level to office properties (around € 1.3 billion), showing the difficult investment market environment for sellers and investors across all asset classes. Measured in terms of quantity, around 90% of single deals were below €50 million, reflecting the current situation of financial markets. Big-ticket investments, usually the main driver of high investment volumes, were thus limited to a few share deals in the first three months of the year, rather than to single-asset investments.