Industrial and logistics investment volumes lowered in Q2, with £1.14bn invested into the sector, representing a fall of 37.3% on Q1 2019. This slowdown has been contributed to by some investors being reluctant to sell properties at a time of political and economic uncertainty and fewer portfolio and large logistics transactions concluding.
The biggest logistics transaction of the quarter was the purchase of the Sports Direct headquarters and distribution centre at Brook Park, Shirebrook by a Malaysian investor for £120.05m. The deal comprised of 6 buildings totalling 1.81m sq ft.
Prime yields in the logistics sector remain firm with good examples being demonstrated by Hines’ purchase of the John Lewis workhouse at Enfield for £22.10m, 3.1% NIY and the purchase by a private investor of Birmingham 100, a newly developed building let for 10 years at £6.25psf, for £12.5m, 4.7% NIY.
In the Industrial Estate sector, one of the largest transactions was M7 / Blackstone’s purchase of the