Cushman & Wakefield present Portugal’s business results

11 Jan, 2012, Lisbon

According to Eric van Leuven, Managing Partner of Cushman & Wakefield in Portugal, “2011 was characterized above all by a historically low volume of transactions: for example, the offices take-up will not have exceeded 80,000 m2 (compared to 105,000 in 2010), and the investment volume will have been of only €250,000,000 compared to €730,000,000 in 2010."

“Regarding our activity, the past year was a difficult one for our agency teams. In the office and industrial sectors, for example, the lack of activity meant reduced levels of take up and, consequently, low invoicing by C&W. Similarly, in the investment market, only a few transactions were closed at the beginning of the year. On the other hand, 2011 was an excellent year for the non-transactional teams, such as asset management, valuations & advisory and project management, which increased their invoicing and market share.”

The asset management team had a very positive year with three new management instructions in the Parque das Nações – Mar Vermelho, Espace and Explorer office buildings. This department currently manages 31 office buildings and 6 shopping centers, totaling more than 310,000 m2 and is responsible for collecting rent with a value of €43,000,000 annually.

As far as valuations & advisory are concerned, the C&W team strengthened its position as market leader with the annual valuation of assets over €16,000,000, including retail assets, offices, residential, tourism and industrial property.

The project management department also had a very good year, having been responsible for completing various works such as the Évora Retail Park and the American School in Linhó. At the present time, the team is in charge of the management and supervision of the Évora Shopping project.

The high loss felt in development directly affected the research and consulting department, which to a great extent depends on market studies for new schemes. However, consulting projects were developed in Portugal for occupiers and investors, reflecting the growing tendency of a need for market information by the decision-making committees in the majority of companies. The team in Portugal also focused on the internationalization of its services, having developed several projects in Spain and in South America.

The transactional departments suffered most from the economic situation, which led to a significant loss of earning in these areas.

The capital markets department was responsible for the sale of a building at Av. da Liberdade to an international family office and also for the sale of a building in Lisbon city centre to an international investor.

The office team was involved in the leasing of 12,000 m2 of new offices, which included the placement of ADECCO in the Mar Vermelho building in Parque das Nações, the lease of new Acústica Médica offices in building Q60 in Quinta da Fonte, the installation of Technip Brasil in the Torre Ocidente, besides numerous contract renegotiation for Ericsson, General Motors, Motorola and Sanofi. This team is currently in charge of leasing circa 86,000 m2 of new space in the Greater Lisbon, with the highlights being Torre Ocidente, the Espace and Explorer buildings, Chiado Terrasse and the Pramerica portfolio in Quinta da Fonte.

In spite of the major losses recorded in sales, the retail department was very busy, having concluded about 50 transactions, many of them in high streets and retail parks, the most noteworthy of which was the representation of Primark in the opening of 3 new stores in Braga, Sintra and Portimão, collaboration in the lease of Aqua Portimão and the placement of some national and international retailers in the Grupo Regojo project, Liberdade Street Fashion in Braga. The retail team was also responsible for the leasing of the Évora Retail Park, which opened at the beginning of November and has brands such as Worten and Moviflor.

The industrial and land team, in spite of the major slow-down of activity in the sector, was involved in two important transactions: the sale of the old Pioneer facilities in Seixal Industrial Park, and the old facilities of Schering in Mem Martins. In 2011, this department was also instructed to exclusively market the Diversey facilities in Abrunheira and those of Merck in Mem Martins and Sacavém.

Regarding the outlook for 2012, Eric van Leuven commented: "2012 will not be very different from last year, since the basics, such as the financial conditions and the lack of confidence of consumers and companies should continue, affecting the activity of the market. However, we foresee a greater number of transactions by the banks and other owners pressured to sell, while in the area of occupancy, the users of stores, offices and warehouses may benefit from the excellent commercial conditions available on the market.”

“As far as the activity of Cushman & Wakefield, I foresee a year as difficult or more difficult than 2011, we are facing 2012 with cautious optimism for the structure and competencies of the company adapted to this new reality”, concluded Eric van Leuven.

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