Between the pandemic, the war, rising prices and increasingly frequent warnings of recession — these are the conditions in which the retail sector operated in the first quarter of 2022. The authors of the cyclical report from BNP Paribas Real Estate Poland point out, among others: continued strengthening of the position of discount store chains and growing interest in facilities with a high potential for modernization, expansion and repositioning.

The beginning of 2022 has brought changes to the local and global economic picture, which have also affected the behaviour of Polish consumers and Poland’s retail market. This has resulted in a further increase in the popularity of necessities and the continued popularity of convenience centres. However, retail growth is recorded by all formats including shopping centres, which augurs well for the rest of the year, reports the latest JLL report Retail Market in Poland – Q1 2022.

The beginning of Q1 2022 has brought record numbers. €898 million was invested into Czech real estate assets in Q1 2022, demonstrating a 210% year-on-year increase. Without the c. €1.3 billion Residomo transaction which was closed in Q1 2020, this quarter's investment volume would be the highest since Q1 2019, Savills' latest research shows.

Barely has the pandemic subsided, the investment market is already facing new challenges due to the war in Ukraine. The end of the first quarter of the year was partly influenced by the new geopolitical situation when the whole real estate market held a breath. Despite new circumstances, ongoing transactions are closing, which is reflected in Q1 2022 investment market results. Furthermore, regional investors from Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia are keeping their interest in real assets located in Poland.

Geopolitical tensions hurt demand for commercial property, appetite for property development, financing conditions and property investment decisions over the short run, the Hungarian National Bank (MNB) reports.

The Central & Eastern European real estate market has registered an investment volume of €2.8 billion in Q1 2022, up 44% year-on-year. By volume, the lion’s share of the deals was realised in Poland (59%) and the Czech Republic (32%). Cushman & Wakefield has summed up the investment market in the CEE region.

New laws on spatial planning and construction will replace the nearly half-century-old 1976 Construction Act in Slovakia. The National Council of the Slovak Republic approved them on Wednesday with a large number of changes compared to the original form, along with a related amendment to the Competence Act, reports webnoviny.sk.

The modern, developer-led warehouse stock in the Czech Republic has almost reached 10 million sqm and it may surpass 11 million within a year. A record amount of space was under construction as it has reached a 103% increase compared to Q1 2021. Gross take-up (including renegotiations) also grew in Q1 2022. This quarter also marks the end of the decline in the vacancy rate after almost two years. A total of 175,300 sqm of modern industrial premises is available for immediate occupation. The Industrial Research Forum has announced industrial market figures for Q1 2022.

Prime rent in the first quarter of 2022 increased again and is in the range of €24.00-24.50 per sqm per month in the city centre. In addition to rents, rising construction prices are still reflected in offers of allowances for office build-outs or other incentives. The Prague Research Forum published the office market figures for Q1 2022.

Serbia’s construction market was booming when the economic and geopolitical situation changed, so the complicating circumstances in the world are stifling the potential growth and slowing down the ongoing recovery. Inflationary pressures have exploded with the start of the war in Ukraine and the effects of the current crisis are still unforeseeable, writes Dejan Krajinović from Beobuild Core d.o.o. for EECFA Serbia.