CCRE Asia Pacific Breakfast

CCRE Asia Pacific BreakfastThe Property Council’s Commercial and Corporate Real Estate breakfast on the 19th of May explored commercial markets in the Asia Pacific region and their flow on impacts to Australia.Cushman & Wakefield’s Head of South East Asia / Australia and New Zealand Research, Dominic Brown, outlined that India is now setting the pace of economic growth primarily driven by growth in the IT sector. Dominic outlined that Australia remains a significant investment destination. While it is largely business as usual across Asia, Singaporean investors are now more eager to look beyond their own borders to invest in Australian markets. Angelo Scasserra, Managing Director – Investment Banking, Real Estate Australia and South East Asia with Credit Suisse, illustrated what is driving the flow of money across the Asia Pacific region. The Australian and Japanese office markets remain highly attractive, with the Bank of Japan providing significant capital into commercial REITs. While historically low Australian interest rates remain attractive for hedging against Asian currency devaluation, Angelo outlined that freehold title and sovereign security remain the strong drawcard for attracting foreign investment to Australia. Leigh Warner, National Director – Research and Strategy with LaSalle Investment Management, highlighted that the cycles across the Asia Pacific are significantly different. Currency movements have become critical to growth outlooks with the current Australian dollar assisting in drawing in Asian investment. Leigh foresees Japanese pension funds flowing capital out of Japanese Government bonds with negative interest rates and into Australian real estate.The Property Council would like to thank Herbert Smith Freehills for hosting the CCRE breakfast and the speakers and moderators for sharing the expertise.Photos from the event can be found here.