Commercial property investment in London hit £19.9bn in 2013, representing a six-year high, according to figures released on January 2 by Cushman & Wakefield.
Investment was up by 47 per cent on 2012 levels, although it remains below the pre-crisis peak hit in 2007 of £20.54bn.
One again most of the money came from overseas, especially toward the end of the year, as investors continue to regard property in London’s central business districts as a safe haven for capital.
Non-UK buyers made up almost three-quarters of the transactions in the City of London and Docklands area and a full 75 per cent in the West End market.
In total, overseas investors account for just under 60 percent of total commercial property investment in the capital.
Among the most high-profile transactions are two of the largest commercial deals the UK has ever seen.
GIC, the Singaporean sovereign wealth fund, bought a 50 per cent stake in the Broadgate estate for £1.7bn and the Kuwaiti sovereign fund St Martins spent the same amount to buy More London, by Tower Bridge.
The five largest transactions account for 77 per cent of the total investment in the last quarter of the year.
Cushman & Wakefield are understandably bullish about the prospects for the coming year, saying that the market is entering a period where it will “return to property fundamentals in light of economic recovery.”
The outlook is very positive, with high levels of investor demand forecast to continue throughout 2014.
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