Industrial occupancy drops to 88.8% in 1Q23

The occupancy rate is lower than the 4Q22 record by 0.6 percentage points.

The occupancy rate for the industrial property market dipped in the first quarter, falling by 0.6 percentage points to 88.8%.

In a report, JTC attributed the dip to new completions and new supply exceeding new demand.

“The total available stock rose by 375,000 sqm whilst total occupied stock increased by 5,000 sqm in Q1 2023, compared to the previous quarter,” JTC said.

As of the end of Q1, there was 52.3 million sqm of industrial space.

Whilst occupancy dropped, rents and prices in the market continued to rise in 1Q 202 due to inflationary pressures.

In 1Q23, prices and rentals of all industrial space rose, increasing by 1.5% QoQ and 2.8% QoQ, respectively.

By property type, multiple-user factories recorded the highest year-on-year rental and price increase at 10.5% and 8.4%, respectively.