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Hungary’s high construction activity start in Q1 2022 was followed by a slowdown in Q2 2022. The EBI Construction Activity Report has found that between this April and June construction works started at a value of around HUF 800 billion. Although the value of projects entering construction decreased in Q2, these are not low numbers at all as Activity Start has been the 5th highest (on a quarterly basis) of recent years. It should be added, though, that recently construction costs have dramatically increased, massively pushing up the Activity Start indicator calculated at current prices, while at constant prices the volume would be lower.

What to invest in during times of uncertainty, war, rampant inflation and soaring interest rates? Avison Young presented its CEE commercial real estate investment market overview after the first half of 2022.

Duna House has released its monthly Transaction Estimate, showing that there were 9,748 residential property transactions in Hungary in August 2022. This marks an increase over July but a 14% drop compared to the number of transactions recorded last August.

The net profit of logistics developer VGP was €153.1 million for the first six months of 2022. The first half of the year came up with €35.4 million worth of signed and renewed lease agreements, which annualised means €281.1 million of the total rental income and another €88.1 million of the annual rent is expected from 40 projects with 1,346,000 sqm under construction that are almost totally pre-let (87.4%). VGP published the results at the end of August.

Warehouse costs increased on average by 8.4% globally and by 6.7% in Europe, with Prague being an outlier, recording an increase of 35.8% in a year due to exceptionally low vacancy. The nationwide vacancy rate fell back to 1.4% in Q2 2022 and this is the lowest level in the market´s history, says Savills in its latest report.

The total volume of investment transactions in H1 2022 amounted to almost €2.9 billion, which was more than 40% more than in the same period last year. The high value of investments demonstrates investors' continued strong interest in Polish investment products in all major categories, despite the new geopolitical situation and the war in Ukraine. AXI IMMO experts analyze the situation of individual sectors in the investment market in the first half of 2022 in Poland.

As of summer 2022, leasing activity in the Kyiv office market was near a standstill and primarily driven by office optimization, as well as lease renewals and renegotiations of existing leases, according to the latest research of CBRE Ukraine. Whereas, as of the beginning of June, we observed a slight recovery in the level of office occupancy by employees who continued to work or who returned to Kyiv. Thus, typical office attendance among corporate occupiers was ca. 10% with many tenants in IT, high tech & telecommunications, healthcare and pharmaceuticals, agriculture, FMCG and industrial sectors planning to increase occupancy to 15%.

The warehouse sector in Poland remains in good shape after the first half of 2022. The market continues to see high tenant activity (3.7 million sqm; +12% y/y), generated mainly by e-commerce, retail chains, and logistics companies. At the end of June this year, developers delivered another 1.8 million sqm (+64% y/y), with the market still facing a shortage of vacant space. The high absorption rate is influencing decisions to start new investments. The result of 5.6 million sqm (+56% y/y) of projects currently under construction is the highest value recorded in the history of the entire sector. AXI IMMO summarizes the first half of the year in the warehouse market in the report "Polish Warehouse Market in H1 2022."

CA Immo has reported strong second-quarter results, continuing the positive business development of the previous quarters. In a challenging market environment, CA Immo increased its recurring earnings (FFO I) in the 1st half-year by 7.9% compared to the previous year, to €73.9 million. Rental income in the first six months was stable at €121.1 million (+1.0% y-o-y), reflecting recent portfolio additions and organic growth despite property sales. Consolidated net income improved by 28.5% to €220.1 million. Following the strong first half-year, CA Immo expects recurring earnings (FFO I) of more than €125 million in the 2022 business year.

In H1 2022, Immofinanz's rental income reached a high level of €144.2 million, the results of asset management improved by 3.0% to €110.0 million, and sustainable FFO 1 from the standing investment business rose by 6.1% to €78.7 million. Net profit equalled €162.7 million, whereby the first half of the previous year was influenced, above all, by a substantial revaluation of the investment in S Immo. With an equity ratio of 57.3% and conservative debt with a net LTV of 32.5%, Immofinanz has a strong capital base.