Hongkong Land reports rising rent returns from Central retail

Property company Hongkong Land appears unaffected by the city’s retail malaise, its retail portfolio in Central fully occupied as of the end of June and average rents on the rise. 

According to the listed company’s half-year results, the average rent in its retail space at Central eased up from $236 per square foot for the second half of last year to $239 per square foot in the six months to June. 

Hongkong Land owns retail properties including Landmark and is considered Central district’s largest landlord. The company, part of Jardine Group, also has extensive portfolios of office space and mixed property interests in Mainland China, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. It owns more than 850,000sqm of office and retail property.

Group-wide, the company achieved an underlying profit of US$466 million in the half year, up 2 per cent year on year.

Chairman Ben Keswick said he expects the solid performance of the group’s investment properties to continue during the second half of the year. 

Hongkong Land’s Central success appears to be in contrast to the fortunes of other landlords in the area, where the number of high-worth visitors from Mainland China is down and spending on luxury goods is following suit. 

Kevin Lam, executive director at Cushman & Wakefield, told the South China Morning Post last week that there are large shops along Pedder Street and Queen’s Road Central which have remained empty for nearly a year. 

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