The volume of industrial spaces rented in Romania (mostly new leases, as opposed to renewals) rose by over one third to more than 650,000 sqm in 2020, from 475,000 sqm in 2019, according to Dunwell, the only local real estate broker specialized exclusively on industrial.

The top industries regarding the rented surfaces were FMCG – 38% of the market share (boosted last year by the growth of online commerce), logistics (15% of the transactions), and retail (13% of all rented surfaces). Production and pharma follow in line.

Most of the contracts were signed for projects around Bucharest, followed by Timisoara, also a major logistics hub, and Craiova, which was last year's surprise.

The most active developers working with the real estate agencies were WDP, with leases totaling 162.640 sqm, followed close behind by CTP (154.044 sqm) and P3 (133.450 sqm).

"In March […], 2020 seemed to be a lost year in terms of business. However, for the industrial segment, it eventually turned out to be rather beneficial and quite active. The market has boasted amazing growth of almost 40%, and the majority of the transactions were new leases (52%), followed by renewals or renegotiations and pre-leases. This is a very positive sign for the manufacturers and distributors in FMCG and retail, first of all," commented Marian Orzu, Managing Partner Dunwell Industrial Brokerage.

(Photo: Pixabay)

andrei@romania-insider.com