Bengaluru tops in APAC region in flexible office space stock: CBRE

NT Correspondent

New Delhi: Bengaluru has the highest supply of premium flexible office space in Asia Pacific region at 10.6 million square feet, according to CBRE.  In its latest report, real estate consultant CBRE said that Bengaluru topped the list of Asia-Pacific region (APAC) cities having the highest flexible stock ahead of 11 major cities.

As of September 2022, Bengaluru recorded 10.6 million square feet (Grade-A assets) flexible stock, the highest among all major APAC cities, including Shanghai, Beijing, Seoul, Tokyo and Singapore. Delhi-NCR ranked fifth in the list of 12 cities with 6.6 million square feet of flexible stock in Grade-A assets, while Hyderabad was at seventh position with a stock of 5.7 million square feet. Anshuman Magazine, Chairman & CEO - India, South-East Asia, Middle East & Africa - CBRE, said, “India is leading the flexible A-grade office stock in the APAC region. Occupiers are largely re-engineering their portfolio and workplace strategies to accommodate hybrid working arrangements.”

This signals a healthy office sector growth amid an accelerated return to office phenomena in India, led by flexible space operators, he added. “It is also noteworthy that Bengaluru, Delhi-NCR and Hyderabad account for nearly 35 per cent of the total flex stock (A Grade) in the APAC region, with Bengaluru recording the highest flexible stock ahead of Asian cities,” Magazine said.

Sanghai and Beijing are at second and third positions with 10 million square feet and 7.6 million square feet area under the flexible office space category. In the Grade-A office buildings, the CBRE report mentioned that India and Singapore reported the highest share of flexible office space in the total office space, compared to other Asian nations.

Out of the total premium flexible office space in Hyderabad, the share of flexible office space was 5.5 per cent -- the highest in the APAC region. Share of flexible office space in Bengaluru out of the total premium office space was at 5.4 per cent, followed by Singapore at 4.6 per cent and Delhi-NCR at 4.4 percent.

Post-pandemic, India continues to witness the highest growth in flexi-office market in the APAC region, the report said. Total flexible stock volume in the APAC region stood at 76 million square feet, recording a 6 per cent year-onyear growth and was 15 per cent above the pre-pandemic growth level during the January-September 2022 period. The total number of flexible space centres in APAC stood at around 3,000