Chart of the day: Check out Singapore's capsizing office rents

It's currently the fourth consecutive quarter of contraction.

Singapore's property owners are finding it harder to find occupants for their empty office spaces as global economic concerns continued to dampen Singapore's business outlook.

According to a report by CBRE, net new demand remained muted with very few expansions and more modest space requirements from limited new entrants.

CBRE said islandwide net absorption for Q216 was -74,741psf.

"With no new completions this quarter, islandwide vacancy remained relatively stable, registering a marginal increase to 5.9%," CBRE said.

However, the report added that vacancy levels are expected to rise sharply over the next 6-9 months with the physical completions of a number of new developments which collectively offer a significant amount of space available for lease.

"Given these imminent completions, developers have been very proactive in structuring pre-lease deals as competition to secure tenants has intensified. Unsurprisingly, rents continued to come under pressure. Grade A CBD Core rents declined for the fifth consecutive quarter, contracting by 4% qoq," CBRE said.