In first half 2018, $22.5 billion of commercial real estate in Manhattan changed hands, up 34 percent from first half 2017, according to Cushman & Wakefield.

The pace is far behind the $38 billion of deals completed during the first six months of 2015, which saw record levels of transaction volume. In 2017, transaction volume was down more than 50 percent from 2015’s peak.

“There are geopolitical risks, trade tensions, increased volatility in the equity markets, but these factors often drive even more capital into the safety of the U.S. economy and into prime real estate assets,” said Doug Harmon, chairman of capital markets at Cushman & Wakefield, in a statement.

Leasing activity is also on the rise in the Big Apple. Second-quarter new office-leasing activity in Manhattan reached 9.1 million square feet, marking only the third time quarterly leasing exceeded 9 million square feet, according to Cushman & Wakefield. And, according to CBRE’s an