Hong Kong office market on record streak led by Chinese

Commercial buildings stand in the central business district of Hong Kong

As analysts start turning bearish on Hong Kong home prices, the commercial property market is showing no signs of cooling, with Chinese companies shelling out record amounts for trophy buildings.
Sellers have reached out to potential buyers including Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., Bank of Communications Co. and Fosun International Ltd., according to brokers who asked not to be named because the information is private. AIA Group Ltd. is among bidders for a Swire Properties Ltd. commercial building in Kowloon Bay that may fetch HKD8 billion (USD1 billion), Hong KongEconomic Times reported Wednesday, citing unidentified people.
Hong Kong, which boasts the most expensive office rents in the world, has become a sought-after destination for Chinese companies seeking to boost their global brands. They are also drawn by the prospect of higher returns and the potential for further currency appreciation on signs that the mainland economy is slowing. Evergrande Real Estate Group Ltd. and China Life Insurance Co. bought office blocks in separate transactions worth a combined HK$18.35 billion ($2.4 billion) in mid-November, breaking previous price records. Buying a property is also a way for international companies to eliminate the risk of costly rent increases in the future, real estate analysts said.
“I expect this to continue as major occupiers in Hong Kong see a lack of future office supply and are concerned their rents will increase,» said John Davies, executive director for Institutional Investment Properties at CBRE Group Inc. “I still think major occupiers will look to buy their own buildings in Hong Kong – to satisfy occupancy needs and manage future costs and limit exposure to what will be office rental growth.”
Wheelock & Co., which sold One HarbourGate West Tower to China Life earlier this month, has started a sale of the East Tower, an adjacent unfinished office building it’s developing in the Hung Hom area of Kowloon, people with knowledge of the matter said. It could fetch about HK$4 billion ($516 million), attracting interest from several Chinese financial firms, the people said.
“We understand from property agents that East Tower attracts great interest in the market,” Eva Ho, a spokeswoman for Wheelock, said in an e-mailed response to Bloomberg queries. She declined to comment further.
Representatives at AIA, Industrial & Commercial Bank of China and Bank of Communications declined to comment on their plans in the Hong Kong property market. A spokeswoman for Fosun did not answer calls and an e-mail seeking comment.
Prices of Grade-A office space in Hong Kong’s Central district are up 78 percent since the beginning of 2010, and 121 percent in the Kowloon East district over that period. The gains come against the backdrop of weakness in other parts of the property market. On the residential property side, prices could decline by as much as 20 percent in the next three to six months Bocom International Holding Co Ltd said. Retail rents are also falling as the city’s appeal as a shopping paradise for mainland tourists has waned, with Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. expecting street rents in Central to drop a further 10 percent in 2016 after falling about 20 percent to 30 percent this year. Frederik Balfour and Vinicy Chan, Bloomberg