Asian property investors target trophy assets in London

There has been a sharp rise in amount of money Asian investors, particularly from China, are investing in London’s commercial property market despite Brexit.

The weaker pound and political uncertainty in Hong Kong, which has left many investors wanting to diversify their portfolio by acquiring property abroad, has helped to fuel investment in London’s commercial property market, which has more than trebled since before Britain voted to leave the European Union.

CBRE real estate group reports that a lot of the money is being channelled through Hong Kong at a time of heightened political uncertainty, with investors from Hong Kong acquiring some of the capital’s best-known skyscrapers including the Cheesegrater and Walkie Talkie.

In the first six months of this year, Chinese investors spent £3.96bn on London commercial property according to data from the CBRE, the highest amount on record and outpacing the £2.69bn spent in the whole of 2016.

“Deals from mainland China already make up a smaller proportion of the activity from the region, with Hong Kong investors most active,” said Anthony Duggan, head of capital markets research at Knight Frank.

“We expect that Chinese investors will still look to make strategic real estate purchases that fit within their business plans,” he added.