The office market in Sofia faces a significant slowdown, due to the economic uncertainty and weakening business activity caused by COVID-19, according to the latest market report of Forton, a strategic partner of Cushman & Wakefield for Bulgaria and Macedonia.

Take-up on the Bratislava office market amounted to 26,000 sqm in Q1 2020 which represents a 58% decrease compared to Q4 2019. The Bratislava Research Forum (JLL, CBRE, Cushman & Wakefield and Colliers International) published the office market figures for Q1 2020.

Consulting company Walter Herz has been appointed the leading agency responsible for commercialisation of space in EQ2 office building in Warsaw, developed by Waryński Group. Handover is planned for March 2021.

The social distancing in office spaces after COVID-19 involves an immediate action strategy to adapt to the new workplace normality, which is why Cushman & Wakefield Echinox has formed a multidisciplinary team to help employers prepare for the gradual return of their employees in office spaces.

Colliers International has been appointed to manage the first stage of the Face2Face Business Campus in Katowice, which is being developed by Echo Investment. The commission brings the Silesian portfolio of Colliers’ property management department up to more than 40,000 sqm of office space.

Construction work on Villa Offices, the highest commercial building in Warsaw Brewery mixed-use complex, has been completed by developer Echo Investment. WeWork will soon open its headquarters in the new office building.

Bucharest and the major university centres in Romania, such as Cluj-Napoca, Timişoara, Iaşi, Braşov or Craiova, are well-positioned to attract new business in the services sector, despite the Covid-19 pandemic that slowed down the transactional activity and led companies to work from home, according to Cushman & Wakefield Echinox.

This year’s first quarter on Poland’s regional office markets was marked by a high level of activity from tenants in the IT sector. The next few months may bring acceleration in activity from companies in the business services sector. JLL summarised the situation on the Polish office market at the end of Q1 2020.

The Polish Commercial Real Estate Chamber (PINK) published figures on Poland’s regional office markets for Q1 2020. The data is sourced from advisory companies from the commercial real estate sector (BNP Paribas Real Estate, CBRE, Colliers International, Cresa, Cushman & Wakefield, JLL, Knight Frank, Savills) and includes information on modern office stock, new completions, take-up volumes and vacancy rates.

Section B of the Olivia Prime office project in Gdańsk has received an occupancy permit and become the third largest office building in Poland. The Olivia Business Center complex now comprises 175,000 sqm in seven buildings and has a target size of more than 200,000 sqm.