Closed deal activity remained stable in Q2

Improved market sentiment was evident in closed transactional activity during the second quarter. Globally, direct investment volumes were stable year-over-year, reaching US$155 billion. This brought first-half volumes to US$287 billion, reflecting a year-to-date decrease of a moderated 4%. Investment volumes in EMEA and Asia Pacific posted modest gains in transactions during the quarter, an early signal for growth. Improvements were recorded across Europe’s largest markets, with the UK and Germany experiencing activity increases of 2% and 27% year-over-year, respectively, in the second quarter. In Asia Pacific, Australia largely led the improvement in the region during the second quarter, but Japan remains the most active market with activity up 8% year-to-date.

As the market improves, divergent sectoral dynamics remain, and in-demand sectors are benefitting from increased bidding activity. Living remains the most liquid property type globally in the first half of 2024, and investor sentiment and bidding dynamics for industrial and logistics remain resilient, in particular for assets with the greatest opportunity to reset rents. These sectors are now also seeing an uptick in larger, strategic transactions, in particular for living strategies. Hotels and retail are registering improvements given strong fundamentals, with both recording gains in investment activity in the first half of the year.