U.K. logistics take-up remains robust in Q1

The U.K. logistics market had a strong start to the year, achieving total take-up of 6.26 million square feet in first quarter 2020, compared to 4.41 million square feet in first quarter 2019, according to the latest data from global real estate adviser, CBRE.

Eleven deals completed during the quarter, a 39 percent decrease compared to the first quarter 2019, which saw 18 deals close. However, the average unit size in first quarter 2020 was much larger at 568,940 square feet, compared with 244,954 square feet in the first quarter 2019. Total availability at the end of first quarter 2020 was 25.73 million square feet, of which 11.44 million square feet comprised new speculative developments. This represents a U.K. vacancy rate of 5.3 percent.

Yorkshire & the North East proved the most attractive region, accounting for 46.7 percent of U.K. take-up for the quarter, followed by the East Midlands (38.3 percent), North West (10.2 percent) and the South East (4.8 percent)