The weakness of sterling is putting some Irish-based exporters under pressure and this is one of the reasons behind a 31 per cent year-on-year drop in the take-up of space in the Dublin industrial and logistics market, according to agent CBRE.
Another key driver of this trend is a severe shortage of new stock on the market in core locations “as opposed to a weakening in demand”.
Nonetheless, the industrial market recorded just 40 transactions in the last quarter of which 26 were lettings and 14 sales.
“Industrial properties accounted for 2 per cent of total investment spend in Q3 2016,” says CBRE. “But prime industrial rents remained stable at €85 per sq m during Q3 and are expected to rise by year-end which will improve the viability of new development in this sector and should see an increase in speculative development in due course.”
Industrial take-up rose 68 per cent in the quarter and was primarily focused on the Dublin southwest (N7) corridor, which accounted for 49 per cent of all sales and lettings. A further 28 per cent of the industrial accommodation that was either let or sold in Dublin during the third quarter was located along the Dublin northeast (N1/M1) corridor, while 17 per cent was along the northwest (N3) corridor.
