Chart of the Day: Island-wide retail vacancy level down to 7.4% in Q4

This was supported by the decline in vacancy levels in the central and suburban areas.

This chart from Savills Singapore shows that after deteriorating for three quarters, the island-wide retail vacancy level dropped 0.8 ppt QoQ to 7.4% in Q4 2017, the lowest since Q1 2016.

Savills’ retail briefing said this was supported by the decline in vacancy levels in the central and suburban areas. Bolstered by the healthy net takeup in the Downtown Core (97,000 sq ft) and Orchard Planning Area (86,000 sq ft), the vacancy level of the Central Region, comprising both planning areas, declined by 0.8 of a ppt QoQ to 7.9%.

Vacancy in Orchard Road dropped to 6%, whilst vacancy in Downtown Core fell to slightly above 10%. Vacancy in suburban retail areas played within 6% to 6.5%, which showed the slowest dip in rates.

However, the rents in Central Region did not record the same rise. According to the Urban Redevelopment Authority (URA), the retail rental index for Central Region dipped 0.8 of a ppt QoQ in Q4 2017.