NEPI Rockcastle, the biggest owner of shopping centres in CEE, recorded a net operating income (NOI) of €241 million in H1 2023, up by 23% compared to the same period of last year over strong rental growth and leasing activity, alongside improved cost recovery

Offices might become hotels, hotels can be converted into apartment buildings and warehouses may serve as retail centres. But location, revenue-generating capacity and environmental considerations are the most important factors in converting successfully an existing commercial property, say experts of Hungarian developer Wing. Ernő Takács, Deputy CEO, responsible for hotels and retail at Wing and Chairman of the Association of Hungarian Property Developers and Gábor Angel, Deputy CEO, responsible for offices at Wing, talked to Property Forum about the challenges of changing the use of a property.

The yield shift began in Hungary with a bit of a delay compared to the regional countries, where repricing has already become evident. Office maintains its dominance but investors have started to see retail assets as more attractive than before, says Attila Balogh, Head of Capital Markets at Hungarian property advisor firm Eston International.

Shopping centres in Slovakia grew this year both in footfall and turnover, and rents also rose. This is according to the latest quarterly report by CBRE. According to the report, there are currently more than 2.36 million sqm of shopping centres and retail parks in Slovakia.

After the extremely difficult year of 2022, the Ukranian retail market has finally managed to improve its performance. Having talked to key market players about trends, tendencies and forecasts, Iryna Nastych summarised the situation in an article prepared by the Ukrainian Real Estate Club for Property Forum.

Bulgaria's retail sector has displayed resilience and growth in Q2 2023, with positive economic indicators, aggressive retail park expansion, and stable pricing trends. Despite challenges faced by CEE countries, Bulgaria's economy is on a positive trajectory, setting the stage for a promising retail landscape. These are the highlights of Cushman & Wakefield/Forton's latest retail market report.

Barbara Topolska, Country Manager for Poland at CPI Property Group has talked to Property Forum about the acquisition of Immofinanz, ESG contributions and the current financing conditions.

How does hyper-personalisation differ from personalisation which has ruled the retail market for years? The former leverages transactional and behavioural data and AI systems to foresee consumer needs more precisely, to reach out with a bespoke and personalised offer, and to deepen existing brand-customer relationships and build new ones. Although hyper-personalisation-based solutions in marketing strategies were initially intended for online shopping, this trend is now opening up new opportunities in multichannel retail. Cushman & Wakefield points out the growing role of such solutions for shopping centre retailers in an increasingly competitive market environment.

Prague's Arkády Pankrác shopping centre is changing hands. The Czech real estate fund Trigea is buying it from the Israeli company G City for €265 million, according to information from Trinity Bank, newstream.cz reports.

Rebounding industrial production and easing inflation are helping the Slovak economy to avoid recession. In the industrial market, it is visible robust construction growth and demand surge. The office sector is resilient but vacant subleased spaces are increasing, while the rental rates are stable amid yield increases. Nevertheless, Slovakia's retail sector is facing challenging dynamics as market limitations amplify alongside a cautious expansion trend, largely due to geopolitical and economic uncertainty, Cushman & Wakefield reports in its Marketbeat Analysis for Q2 2023.