Tenant demand for modern logistics and manufacturing space in Poland is growing at a rapid pace. In H1 2017, warehouse supply totalled 707,000 sqm while take-up hit a record high of 1,786,000 sqm, as revealed in Cushman & Wakefield’s latest report.

The office markets of Central European capitals are growing dynamically: the number of new leases is on the rise, vacancy rates have hit record lows in several cities and demand for large office space is also growing. In light of all this it is no surprise that development activity is also heating up on the most popular markets of the region. We asked three major office developers to tell us which city in the region offers the most attractive development opportunities, how tenants’ requirements are changing and what makes Central European capitals different.

In H1 2017, the Wrocław office market recorded demand totalling nearly 92,000 sqm, mostly as a consequence of the high level of activity among tenants from the business services sector. JLL summarised the first half of 2017 on Wrocław's office market.

JSE listed Echo Polska Properties (EPP) released its interim results for the six-month period ended June 2017. During the period EPP successfully concluded €262 million in acquisitions, boosting the portfolio to €1.7 billion.

Knight Frank has been appointed sole agent of the Galeria Ostrowiec shopping mall. Experts from the company’s Retail Agency will diversify the offer of the shopping mall, owned by First Property Group.

The Nowy Świat 2.0 office building in Warsaw has been recognized with an LEED Gold ecological certificate. Experts from JLL supported investor Centrum Bankowo-Finansowe “Nowy Świat” S.A. in obtaining the certificate.

Free office space is dwindling in the Czech Republic. The office vacancy rate in Brno, as well as in Prague, has slipped below 10%. Both cities experience the lowest rate of vacant offices in the last decade. Brno recorded a sharp decline by 2.4 percentage points in H1 2017, while in the capital demand totalled 153,500 sqm in Q2 2017, up 45% on the previous quarter and 36.9% year-on-year. Overall, more than 370 deals were closed in Prague in H1 2017, many of which were pre-leases. In contrast, in Brno there was an 8% drop in lettings compared to H2 2016.

After completion of the second part of the construction in Panattoni Park Cheb, Tchibo has opened an expanded distribution centre for its e-shop. The rentable space increased from 39,000 sqm to 73,000 sqm. This means that in Cheb has grown the second largest logistics hall in the Czech Republic and Tchibo’s largest distribution centre in Central and Eastern Europe. Operations of the first part of the building were commenced on 2 December last year and the site these days just dispatched its millionth parcel.

The Romanian commercial property market has turned over a new leaf in recent years. Thanks to growing interest from international investors 2017 is set to become a record year on the Romanian investment market. The industrial market is among the segments growing especially strongly with one player in particular expanding its portfolio rapidly. Ana Dumitrache, Co-Country Head of CTP Romania shared her take on the Romanian market.

Colliers International strengthens its office spaces consultancy team by hiring Sebastian Dragomir for the position of Office Advisory Director. Sebastian Dragomir has over 12 years of experience in real estate, time during which he has worked on the office, industrial, land and landlord representation segments and formerly occupied the position of Senior Leasing Manager at Immofinanz Romania.