Lloyds Banking Group Plc has announced that it has agreed to sell a portfolio of European commercial real estate loans to MELF Sarl, an affiliate of Marathon Asset Management LP, as the group looks to lower its "non-core run-off portfolio." The proceeds from the sale will be used for general corporate purposes. The transaction, which... Read More
In a pioneering move for any Japanese company, electronics giant Hitachi has confirmed it is moving its global rail business to Britain. Consolidating both manufacturing and management in the UK should allow the train maker to boost its revenue by as much as £1bn. Work is already underway on the construction of Hitachi’s £82m plant... Read More
The three-way partnership behind the Brent Cross Cricklewood regeneration project say they are still searching for new investors despite a ministerial decision to delay the calling in of revised plans for the multi-billion pound north-west London scheme. Brent Cross Shopping Centre owners Hammerson and Standard Life and Barnet Borough... Read More
Initial ground work is expected to begin next month on a 250-acre innovation campus at Derby after the infrastructure specialist Balfour Beatty was named as the development’s roads contractor. Infinity Park will cost £200m to create and aims to replicate the success of Pride Park, a business estate on the outskirts of Derby city... Read More
Birmingham city councillors have ordered wind tunnel test on the designs of a 15-storey office block despite unanimously backing the project as part a business district revival. The safety checks were agreed after concerns the building could funnel winds through nearby streets. The potential danger to pedestrians was raised by planning... Read More
2013 saw the highest pan-European commercial real estate investment volume since 2007 with approximately €141 billion was transacted. This amount represents a 21 per cent rise over 2012 figures, according to a recently-released investment bulletin from Savills. The vast majority (77 per cent) of the investment turnover was noted in... Read More
This week, Reigate and Banstead Borough Council has announced it is to provide funding for a new hotel as part of Redhill, Surrey’s extensive regeneration programme. The local authority will join forces with Aviva and Sainsbury’s in the revival of the Warwick Quadrant in the town centre. Under the plans, Sainsbury’s and Aviva... Read More
While many sectors have begun to feel the beneficial impact of the gradually improving economy, pubs, breweries and distilleries around the country are still struggling. It is hoped that the measures taken in the budget will stem the flood of pub closures With the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) showing pub closures are once more... Read More
According to the advisory company Forton, €130M is expected to be invested in the Bulgarian commercial property market this year. Last year, the country saw acquisitions worth €54M. This figure was 26 per cent higher than the previous year. The high level of demand for real estate across the globe will "serve as an incentive" for... Read More
A tiny Hong Kong shop has become one of the most expensive commercial properties in the world after changing hands for almost £14m — around £106,000 per square foot. The 130sq ft store on Matheson Street, which sells audio and visual equipment, changed hands for HK$180m. Its square footage price overtakes the previous record of an... Read More
UK fashion retailers are enjoying a stronger sales period of late, with the wet weather and chilly temperatures encouraging consumers to spend on winter clothing still found on the sales rails of many stores. Combined with the increase in sales over the past three quarters, many are now able to post more positive annual results than have been... Read More
But visitor numbers fall below expectations The Shard may not be fully let but, according to figures filed with Companies House, the operators of the building’s 800 ft high viewing platform made a pre-tax profit during 2013. The figures cover the period between the official opening of the View from the Shard on February 1st 2013 to... Read More
Highbridge Properties — the developers behind Britain’s biggest business park — has unveiled plans for a new 82-acre industrial site which, it claims, could create more than 1,000 new jobs. Indigo Park will be located north of Newcastle on land released in collaboration with North Tyneside Council. The Sandy Lane site is believed... Read More
The global real estate market will continue to grow hand-in-hand with investment in the sector over the next 16 years with rapid urbanisation and demographic changes in the emerging markets delivering “spectacular returns”. The forecast comes in a report, by asset management specialists Real Estate 2020, which claims the global... Read More
The majority of large retailers now provide a home delivery or click and collect service to cater for changing shopping patterns. While this may reduce footfall in bricks and mortar outlets it has, at the same time, led to a greater need for warehouse space to cope with the growing demand. For this reason Waitrose has made the decision... Read More
The boom in business growth currently gripping the UK is certainly good news for the economy, but growth limitations for businesses are preventing many from achieving their full potential as the recovery takes hold. One of the key issues, of course, is the rising cost of energy. Others involve tax, pensions and planning. Fortunately,... Read More
Work is expected to start this summer on a 90,000sq foot office scheme in the centre of Cardiff. The Welsh Government, which is backing the project, is currently evaluating a shortlist of tenders from construction firms bidding to take on the development. Welsh Business Minister, Edwina Hart AM, says the Cardiff office scheme is a genuine... Read More
High Street footfall has long been one of the most accurate measurements of consumer confidence, but with the advent of online retailing this changed dramatically. Now, it is seen more as a means of determining how well attempts to rejuvenate high street trading are working – or not, as February’s results seem to indicate. After... Read More
Tenants in Piccadilly’s historic Burlington Arcade fear they may be forced out by massive rent rises. The concerns emerged after the owner revealed that an un-named perfume retailer is close to signing a lease agreement at six times the current rate. The existing occupier, who is due to vacate the unit shortly, currently pays £160... Read More
London’s flourishing tech sector is rapidly expanding beyond its Silicon Roundabout heartland and increasing its share of City office space. Last year, according to new figures from DTZ and JLL, take-up among tech firms accounted for over one million sq ft of transactions. This represents 23 per cent of available space. Over the same... Read More
The developers behind the new Victoria Gate shopping centre in Leeds, formerly known as the Eastgate Quarters, have confirmed that work on the project will finally begin next month after planning consent was granted last September. The new shopping centre will face stiff competition from the popular Trinity Leeds The £150 million... Read More
Digital start-ups and expansion among established retail companies are credited as the driving force behind Brighton and Hove’s recovery. Now a new survey has placed the south coast city among the UK’s top ten locations that provide the best environment for business ventures to survive and flourish. The East Sussex city was ranked... Read More
