In Q1 2020, Panattoni signed leases for more than 425,000 sqm, of which 207,000 sqm were taken up in March alone. There was 1,051,777 sqm under development, and since the beginning of its European operations, Panattoni has delivered 10 million square metres, with 7.6 million of that in Poland.

The preliminary investment volumes for the CEE region for Q1 2020 have reached ca. €3.7 billion, despite the onset of COVID-19 in CEE at the beginning of March. This volume was significantly boosted by the ca. €1.3 billion acquisition of the Residomo portfolio in the Czech Republic by Heimstaden, however, it still represents a y-o-y growth of 68% over Q1 2019 (ca. €2.2 billion) and 28% over Q1 2018 (ca. €2.9 billion).

Panattoni is extending a production plant making specialised telecommunications systems at Panattoni Park Szczecin I. Next to the existing 32,000 sqm, the developer will build a further 24,000 sqm. As a result, this June the logistics and industrial complex will be 80 percent completed, and by year-end Panattoni intends to embark on the construction of the final 42,000 sqm phase of the park, completing the entire project planned to total 220,700 sqm.

Optimum Ventures Private Equity Fund (owned by Optima, the fund manager of the National Bank of Hungary's foundations) and an affiliate of Lone Star Funds (an American private equity firm) have entered into a conditional share purchase agreement, pursuant to which Optima will acquire a majority shareholding (61.49%) in Globe Trade Centre S.A., a Polish company trading on the Warsaw Stock Exchange and Johannesburg Stock Exchange.

JLL and CBRE have been selected by Immobel Poland as agents responsible for the commercialization process of Central Point in Warsaw. The investment is being built on the corner of Marszałkowska and Świętokrzyska Streets and above an intersection of the two metro lines of Warsaw.

At the end of 2019, the total modern office stock in Łódź amounted to 528,300 sqm with more than 90,000 sqm currently under construction. Cushman & Wakefield has summarised 2019 on Łódź’s office market.

Hines Poland Sustainable Income Fund (HPSIF), an investment fund managed by Hines Polska, finalised the sale of its real estate portfolio, comprising six distribution parks and the Nord Point office building, to CGL Investment Holdings Corporation Limited. Investing in commercial properties in order to increase their value and then selling them is one of Hines’ core business areas. In 2020, the company plans to expand in the Polish market.

In 2019, Lublin’s total office stock amounted to 191,200 sqm with no new office projects delivered to the market in the last 12 months. In 2017-2018, the city’s office stock expanded by nearly 40% following a period of robust local development activity. Cushman & Wakefield summarised 2019 on Lublin’s office market.

According to the Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), which measures the activity level of purchasing managers in a given sector, Hungary's manufacturing industry was hit much harder by the coronavirus crisis than the same sector in other CEE countries. The Polish and Czech PMI show that these economies were less affected by the downturn in March than the economy of Hungary.

As the global pandemic progresses across borders and within countries, Cushman & Wakefield’s EMEA market research experts shared what they are seeing on the ground in their countries.