Central's Grade A office vacancy rate edges down in January
Number of regional headquarters based in Hong Kong rebounds in five years
HONG KONG, February 19, 2025 – Central's Grade A office market recorded the largest net absorption among submarkets in January, while the vacancy rate improved from 11.6% to 11.3% by the end of the month, according to JLL's latest Hong Kong Monthly Market Dynamics released today.
Despite the overall leasing market recording a negative net absorption of 87,500 sq ft, Central recorded the largest net absorption among the submarkets at 81,100 sq ft.
Alex Barnes, Managing Director at JLL in Hong Kong, said: "The overall vacancy rate rose slightly to 13.3% as at end-January. We saw improvements in some submarkets such as Central, with financial institutions continuing to expand in the submarket. Furthermore, Wanchai/Causeway Bay vacancy improved by 0.2 percentage points,"
"And we began to see a rebound in the number of regional headquarters based in Hong Kong in 2024, marking the first increase in five years. The number of regional headquarters has increased 5.5% to 1,410 as at end-2024, which could support the city's office leasing market," he added.
Cathie Chung, Senior Director of Research at JLL, said: "Overall Grade A office rent continued to decline in January, with a marginal month-on-month drop of 0.2%. Central and Wanchai/Causeway Bay rents fell by 0.1% and 0.2%, respectively, while Hong Kong East and Kowloon East submarkets recorded rent drops of 0.8% and 0.3%."
| Grade A Office Vacancy Rates | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period | Overall | Central | Wanchai /Causeway Bay | Hong Kong East | Tsimshatsui | Kowloon East |
| End-Jan 25 | 13.3% | 11.3% | 9.8% | 13.0% | 8.9% | 18.8% |
| End-Dec 24 | 13.2% | 11.6% | 10.0% | 12.4% | 8.9% | 18.6% |
Source: JLL Research
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