Dr. Angelus Bernreuther has been appointed as the new Head of Business Development at Defama, tasked with leading the transaction business of the publicly listed holder of retail properties.

The number of factory outlet centres in Europe rose slightly to 198 units in the last 12 months, while their sales area expanded by 7.6% to just under 3.3 million sqm, according to an ecostra report. 

Industrial developer WDP has secured a €250 million loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for investments in photovoltaic systems and electric vehicle charging stations across its portfolio. 

The headline RICS Commercial Property Sentiment Index (CPSI) holds steady in the latest survey for Q2 2024, while the outlook for secondary offices and retail remains particularly negative in many markets.

The debt markets in Europe remain resilient. An extensive survey by CBRE among 130 companies shows that the lending environment is on a solid footing for when investment activity starts to pick up in the second half of 2024. Nearly two-thirds of respondents expect a recovery compared to last year with refinancing being the main source of demand. Industrial and multifamily are the preferred sectors for lending, with student accommodation and hotels seeing the strongest increase in demand.

Industrial developer CTP has announced the signing of a 5-year €500 million unsecured syndicated sustainability-linked loan facility at a fixed all-in cost of 4.7%. At the same time, the company launched a concurrent tender offer which will enable the group to repurchase short dated bonds with a total nominal amount of €500 million.

Croatian investor Pemo Centar has announced the development of a new office building in Zagreb. The Business Centre Arena office building spanning 9,900 sqm will be delivered by Q4 2025 following an investment of around €20 million.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has reduced its main interest rate from 4% to 3.75%, following Canada's rate cut earlier in the week. ECB President Christine Lagarde announced that the outlook for inflation had significantly improved, which enabled the rate cut. However, she warned that inflation would likely stay above the 2% target, averaging 2.5% in 2024 and 2.2% in 2025. The ECB remains committed to keeping its policy restrictive to achieve the inflation target. This rate cut, though anticipated, is seen as a relief for consumers and businesses, aiming to stimulate economic activity by making borrowing cheaper.

The property investment market in the EU reached around €22.8 billion in Q1 2024, down by approximately 26% compared to the same period of last year, although some markets have rebounded significantly in this period, according to an Arnold Investments report.

The headline RICS Global Commercial Property Sentiment Index (CPSI) for Q1 2024 stands at -10 which is the least downbeat reading since Q2 2022. In addition, the less negative tone across the aggregate results is coming through both on the occupier and investor sides of the market.