A net take-up of 86% was recorded in H1, while the remaining 14% consisted of contract renewals and renegotiations. Bucharest attracted over 54% of the transactional volume, while an important leasing activity was also noticed in Ploieşti (16%), Timișoara (6%) and Cluj (3%). The largest transaction closed in Q2 2022 pertained to the 53,000 sq. m expansion (37,000 sq. m) and renegotiation (16,000 sq. m) of the Modivo / epantofi.ro space within WDP Park Stefanesti.

Demand was driven by various sectors, as retail and ecommerce (28%), along with logistics and distribution (11% market share) and automotive (5%) companies were the most active in Q2 2022.

The development activity slowed down a bit in Q2, with a total of 96,000 sq. m being delivered, with the H1 new supply volume reaching 296,000 sq. m. The most important deliveries were represented by the new 35,000 sq. m A&D Pharma warehouse within CTPark Mogoșoaia, along with a new 19,000 sq. m phase of the Timișoara Industrial Park delivered by Globalworth – Global Vision.

The stock of modern industrial and logistics spaces in Romania exceeded 5.9 million sq. m and it will break the 6 million sq. m threshold by the end of the year given the developers’ current plans. Around 3 million sq. m of such spaces can be found in projects located around Bucharest, while Timișoara (583,000 sq. m), Cluj-Napoca (412,000 sq. m) and Ploiesti (370,000 sq. m) represent the main regional logistics hubs.

Andrei Brînzea, Partner, Land & Industrial Agency, Cushman & Wakefield Echinox: “The industrial and logistics market continues to have a balanced evolution in terms of supply and demand, as we witnessed a national vacancy rate decrease below 4%, the lowest level recorded during the last five quarters. The second half of the year is marked by inflationary pressures and also by the increase in construction costs, but the market should still be able to reach at least the 2021 levels in terms of demand.”

New projects totaling almost 600,000 sq. m are currenly under construction in Romania, as Bucharest remains the most active market, with a pipeline of over 300,000 sq. m, developers also being active in Oradea, Cluj or Timișoara.