Office deals in the South West plummeted in the second quarter of the year as the 海角视频 went into lockdown.
Latest figures on the region鈥檚 office market from commercial real estate company CBRE show transaction volumes totalled 拢114million - 25 per cent of average annual volumes of 拢450million.
According to CBRE, the forward funding of Bristol鈥檚 Halo development - a green office that will be part of the city's Finzels Reach development - by Tesco Pension Investment in June accounted for a "significant portion" of transaction volumes for the half year.
The in-house asset manager for the supermarket's pension scheme is ploughing 拢70million into the Grade A office building.
Prime rents in Bristol city centre currently stand at 拢36.50 per sq ft following the letting to law firm Osborne Clarke at Halo, while the out-of-town market remain stable at 拢23 per sq ft, CBRE said.
鈥淕iven that much of the second quarter of the year was spent in lockdown, it wasn鈥檛 surprising to see a marked drop in activity for the region鈥檚 office sector compared to what we would have anticipated prior to the coronavirus outbreak,鈥 said Andrew Sayner, head of capital markets at CBRE South West.
鈥淗owever, we鈥檙e witnessing signs that activity and confidence is being restored in the market, with new sales launched and deals going under offer.
"As restrictions continue to be relieved, we expect to see a continued but steady increase in market activity in Q3 and Q4 as investors return to the market.鈥
