UBS AG, Switzerland’s biggest bank, is planning to expand its Chinese property investment business with a move into commercial real estate.
Office, retail and industrial properties are “where investor demand is certainly moving to” in China, Trevor Cooke, head of global real estate for Asia-Pacific at UBS Global Asset Management, said in an interview in Sydney. “The stock of investment grade assets in China is growing at about 35 percent per year.” The bank would either partner with a developer or a company with an ability to source existing assets, he said.
Several cities in China are expected to experience improving rental demand for commercial space on the back of recent regulatory changes, including policies to boost growth in certain areas, CBRE Group Inc. said in its Asia Pacific Office MarketView report. China was among the five most sought-after markets for retailers looking to open stores this year, a separate report by the broker, released in March, showed. (Bloomberg)
