In the third quarter of 2023, the logistics sector in Spain is facing a challenging scenario, with trends showing an overall improvement since the beginning of the year, but still below the figures of 2022. The total investment numbers remain significantly lower than last year, but prime rents have increased, and total take-up, although slightly lower than in 2022, is not far from the figures recorded in that year.

In Madrid, total logistic take-up in 2023 has reached approximately 700,000 sq.m. so far, with 300,000 sq.m. just in the third quarter, a higher figure than the same period last year, which was only 210,000 sq.m. Similarly, the cumulative take-up figures for the period from January to September 2022 are still higher than their equivalent in 2023, reaching 860,000 sq.m. In Barcelona, on the other hand, take-up reached only 66,500 sq.m. in the third quarter, with a total accumulated of 390,000 sq.m. in 2023 to date, representing a 30% decrease compared with last years’ figures.

On the other hand, the Spanish logistics market received around 311,000 sq.m. in newly constructed properties, subsequently increasing vacancy rates slightly. Vacancy rates, which stood at 5.7% in the second quarter of 2023, increased 0.75, reaching 6.4% in the third quarter of 2023. Compared to the figures for the same period last year, when vacancy rates decreased to 5.95%, and when the logistics park increased by 690,000 sq.m., the third-quarter vacancy rate figures show a slight year-on-year increase.

Prime rents have increased, both in Madrid and Barcelona in the third quarter of 2023. In the first logistic crown of Madrid, they remained in the price range of 5.25-6.50 €/sq.m., the same price range observed since the beginning of 2023. Compared to the same period last year, when prime rents were 6.25 €/sq.m., according to Knight Frank, the figures for the third quarter of 2023 represent a slight increase. In the second logistic crown of Madrid, prime rents are in the range of 4.50-5.00 €/sq.m., and in the third crown, they are in the range 3.75-4.15 €/sq.m. In Barcelona, prime rents are higher than in Madrid, ranging from 6.00-8.00 €/sq.m. in the first logistic crown in the third quarter of 2023. In the second crown, rents are in the range of 4.75-6.00 €/sq.m., and in the third crown, they are in the price range of 4.00-4.50 €/sq.m. Regarding the total investment volume, the total figure amounted to €280 million in third quarter of 2023, representing a sharp decrease of 70% compared to the €960 million invested in the second quarter of 2022. The investment volume in the third quarter of 2023 accounted 20% of the total annual investment volume, which amounts to €900 million. This is a significant decrease compared to the approximately €2.0 billion invested in the same period of the previous year. Among the key transactions in the third quarter of 2023 were Sagax’s acquisition of several logistic assets owned by Mileway (a last-mile logistics subsidiary of Blackstone) for approximately €66 million, Panattoni’s purchase of a logistics park in Murcia for €46 million and Hines’ acquisition of a 40,000 sq.m. plot of land in San Fernando de Henares (Madrid) for €28 million.

• Compartir en: