Using a bespoke ‘capital gravity’ model which forecasts likely flows of capital between countries and their estimated size for 2021, the research predicts that investment from Canada to the US ($13.3 billion) and from the US to the UK ($10.1 billion) will dominate transactions, with Germany, Singapore and South Korea also likely to be major players in cross-border investment activity.

The focus of these capital flows will principally be between liquid, resilient and trusted global safe-havens. Nevertheless, core, income-producing assets in ‘near-neighbour’ locations will also attract demand, particularly when physical travel remains subject to restrictions. 

Andrew Sim, Head of Global Capital Markets and MD Europe, Knight Frank, commented: ”While we are clearly in a period of heightened uncertainty, large pools of capital still need to be deployed driven by the search for income and yield. Investors are of course being ever more forensic in their decision-making with very clear sector winners and losers apparent to all.”

Will Matthews, Head of Commercial Research, Knight Frank commented: “At a time of heightened uncertainty in the wider economic and geopolitical context, the security of real estate income will remain a compelling attraction for investors.  What’s more, as the pandemic forces the rise of localism in domestic economies, there will be even more reason for investors to seek the benefits of true diversification via cross-border acquisitions.  .”