Despite a decline in industrial production, a lack of inventory has enabled global growth in industrial rents, according to CBRE’s Global Industrial MarketView report.

Leasing from logistics operators and retail distributors fueled the increase, the report said.

CBRE’s Global Industrial Rent Index rose by 0.5% quarter-over-quarter in the third quarter of 2011, and by 1.7% year-over-year, driven largely by activity in Asia. Rents have stabilized in the U.S., Europe and Africa.

“Global industrial rents now reflect 2006 levels,” said CBRE’s chief economist, Raymond Torto.

Rents in Asia have risen above pre-recession levels. At an average price of $21.84 per square foot for prime industrial space, Tokyo boasts the highest industrial rents per square foot in the world, followed by London, Singapore and Sao Paulo. – Guelda Voien
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While many U.S. homebuyers are cutting back when it comes to living arrangements, the Tokyo apartment in this CNN video redefines space efficiency. Sitting on just 90 square feet of land, the apartment allows for appliances to be tucked under counters and closets hidden in stairwells. But this three-story apartment isn’t the only unit getting in on the high-efficiency trend — in April, this Hong Kong architect showeed off his 344-square-foot abode, complete with sliding walls.

Tony Greenberg, founder of Up Ventures

While some New York City real estate developers look to another neighborhood for inspiration, Tony Greenberg, founder of the just-launched Up Ventures, looked halfway around the world.

Up Ventures, a real estate development group specializing in innovative restaurant space, aims to bring Tokyo- and Hong Kong-style restaurant real estate to New York City.

“Here in New York, you see restaurants on the basement floor, the ground floor [or] the rooftop [in different buildings],” Greenberg said. But overseas, Greenberg said that restaurateurs establish eateries on upper-level floors of the same building. Rather than browse blocks for restaurants, patrons could look upstairs or downstairs at the offerings in a single building.

Greenberg, who had been vice president of finance at Hudson Yards Development Corporation before leaving the post in the late spring, said that the concept clicked for him during his travels and he began to explore ways in which he could apply the relatively unheard of strategy in New York. [more]