Overall industrial vacancy climbed 70 bps to 4.7 percent in the third quarter, driven by a record 171.8 million square feet (msf) of construction completions — an 18.7 percent uptick quarter-over-quarter (q-o-q) and 10.4 percent increase compared with the previous record set in third quarter 2022, according to Cushman & Wakefield in its third quarter U.S. industrial stats.
Since the start of the year, more than 451 msf of new deliveries have been completed across the nation — 23.5 percent higher compared with this time last year — of which the third quarter delivered the highest level of inventory on record to date at 171.8 msf. The South region continues to outpace the nation, accounting for 47 percent of the year-to-date deliveries.
The significant amount of new vacant supply coupled with softening consumer demand and modest new leasing activity have all contributed to the rise in overall vacancy. Quarterly absorption saw 46.2 msf of net industrial g