SCOTLAND’S commercial real estate sector attracted around £575 million of international capital in the first half, and is on course for a record year for inward investment, research by property agent Savills shows.
Asian investors accounted for the largest proportion of the international capital, investing £240m in Scotland and surpassing the £180m invested in the whole of 2018,
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Savills noted. South Korean investors accounted for more than £200m of this investment, participating in some of the largest commercial property deals north of the Border so far this year.
The Leonardo Innovation Hub in Edinburgh was sold to a South Korean institutional investor for £100m.
Savills meanwhile highlighted the sale of 4-8 St Andrew Square in Edinburgh to a German pension fund in a £120m deal.
The property agent highlighted strong growth in Scotland’s technology sector, particularly in Edinburgh, and flagged the importance of embracing 5G (fifth-generation cellular network technology) in this context.
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Nick Penny, head of Savills Scotland and a director in the investment team, said: “2019 is shaping up to be a record year for inward investment into Scotland. Investors are attracted by the strong performance of the economy, record employment and more attractive yields on offer relative to other regional cities in the south east.”
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He added: “Recent plans set out by the [Scottish] Government to position Scotland as a forward-looking digital nation by embracing 5G has the potential to enhance Scotland’s global competitiveness and continue to drive inward investment.
“We are already experiencing a growth in the tech sector, particularly in Edinburgh, and with digital becoming more engrained in business processes and procedures, having a fast and reliable digital infrastructure will become increasingly vital for businesses.”
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