Mingtiandi

Asia real estate and outbound investment news

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter
Remember Me

Lost your password?

Register Now

Loading...
  • Capital Markets
  • Events
    • Mingtiandi 2025 Event Calendar
    • Mingtiandi APAC Residential Forum 2025
    • Mingtiandi Singapore Forum 2025
    • Mingtiandi APAC Logistics Forum 2025
    • Mingtiandi APAC Data Centre Forum 2025
    • Mingtiandi Tokyo Forum 2025
    • More Events
  • MTD TV
    • Residential
    • Logistics
    • Data Centre
    • Office
    • Singapore
    • Tokyo
    • Hong Kong
    • All Videos
    • Post-Event Stories
  • People
    • Industry Moves
    • MTD TV Speakers
  • Logistics
  • Data Centres
  • Asia Outbound
  • Retail
  • Research & Policy
  • Advertise

Most Chinese Commercial Property Investment No Longer in China as Outbound Deals Jump 46%

2015/01/27 by Michael Cole Leave a Comment

Darren Xia JLL

Darren Xia, head of JLL’s International Capital Group for China, addressing the media today.

Chinese investments in overseas real estate increased by 46 percent to a record $16.5 billion in 2014, as China’s slumping property market combined with regulatory reforms to send its investors across borders in search of deals.

For the first time ever, Chinese buyers have spent more on commercial real estate outside of China than domestically in 2014, according to a report released today by property consultancy JLL, as outbound acquisitions of office and retail space jumped by nearly half compared to the previous year.

2014 also saw a geographic shift in Chinese buyer preferences, with Australia capturing a growing portion of both commercial and residential investment, although Europe continues to be the leading destination for Chinese real estate buyers.

Chinese Outbound Deals Could Reach $20 Billion in 2015

The prolonged slump in China’s domestic market – many cities now report an oversupply of office and mall space, combined with the country’s growing economy and a more liberal regulatory environment to transform Chinese real estate investors into global market players this past year.

Darren Xia, head of JLL’s International Capital Group for China noted that, “Chinese real estate investors used 2014 to internationalize their investment strategies. At a time when macro concerns around developers and residential prices dampened the domestic market, international diversification allowed Chinese investors to continue to grow sustainably and to ensure long-term returns.”

According to JLL’s figures, 52 percent of all commercial real estate transactions by Chinese investors were for assets outside of the country’s borders, and the agency believes that this trend will likely continue.

David Green-Morgan, head of global research for JLL’s International Capital Group said, “The emergence of Chinese capital into the global real estate market has been growing steadily over recent years and the fact that half of all Chinese purchases in 2014 were outside of China shows the demand for overseas property is likely to remain strong for many years to come. The number of new Chinese investors JLL is in dialogue with demonstrates that we are likely to see outbound capital continue to grow in 2015, with the possibility of it reaching US$20 billion by year end 2015.”

Commercial Investments Are Big and Getting Bigger

Within the real estate world, Chinese investor are showing a preference for commercial assets, and deals for office and retail space are growing at a faster pace than residential transactions.

The total value of overseas commercial real estate purchased by Chinese investors in 2014 climbed to $11.2 billion last, according to the report’s findings, while residential developers increased their outbound allocations to over US$5.3 billion, a 38 percent increase over 2013.

Office and residential site acquisitions accounted for 85 percent of all Chinese overseas purchasing activity, although JLL also noted strong demand for hotel and hospitality assets.

China Now the #5 Source of Real Estate Capital Globally

The surge in outbound investment also boosted China’s ranking among real estate investors globally, according to the study.

Although the country’s economy slowed to its lowest rate in years, GDP growth for the year still reached 7.4 percent, according to government figures, with some metrics indicating that China is already the world’s largest economy.

This economic growth, and a taste for real estate, enabled China to climb to the fifth position globally among sources of real estate investment capital, trailing only the US, Canada, Germany and the Middle East, according to JLL’s analysis.

Australia Gaining Favor with the Chinese

The rapid growth in Chinese outbound real estate investment continued to favour Europe, which captured $5.5 billion in capital from China last year to claim one third of total transactions.

In 2014 Australia also became a target for Chinese investors, with over $3 billion in real estate deals heading down under last year. The Americas attracted $2.5 billion in Chinese real estate investment.

At the city level, Sydney outstripped all municipalities except London (which captured $4 billion in Chinese capital) to become the second-ranked urban destination for Chinese real estate investment last year, with $2.2 billion in deals.

Just this week Chinese investors have announced two major commercial acquisitions in Sydney, with Dalian Wanda revealing plans for a $1 billion mixed-use project on Monday, and Fosun announcing a $93 million purchase of an office building in the Australian city today.

New York, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Melbourne, Tokyo and Singapore also ranked among the top cities for Chinese property deals by capturing between $500 million to $1.5 billion each in Chinese capital last year.

Share this now

  • LinkedIn
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email

Filed Under: Outbound Investment Tagged With: crebrief, Darren Xia, David Green-Morgan, JLL, Sydney

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Get Mingtiandi Delivered

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

MTD TV

Ricky Tse of GLP Capital Partners
GLP, Heitman, JLL and BEI Group See Opportunity in Hong Kong Industrial Upgrades
future office tb
C&W, TEC, Essensys and Lead8 Say Flexible Working is Here to Stay: MTD TV

More MTD TV Videos>>

People in the News

singh-anshuman
Asia Real Estate People in the News 2025-06-16
Raymond Lee Paul Hastings
Law Partner Picks Up Hong Kong Home of Former Birmingham City Boss for $37M
Teo Chee Hean Temasek
Asia Real Estate People in the News 2025-06-09
Lincoln Pan Jardines
Asia Real Estate People in the News 2025-06-02

More Industry Professionals>>

Latest Stories

URA chief executive officer Lim Eng Hwee
Singapore Home Sales Slump to Five-Month Low as Government Dials Back New Supply
Brian Hung, Director, APG Asset Management
APG, Invesco and GLP Join Panels on Korea, China Logistics From Tuesday
Hikaru Teramoto
Kenedix, Hulic Team With Kennedy Wilson to Buy Seattle Apartment Block for $173M

Sponsored Features

How to Create a Win-Win for Investors and Occupiers
Lingeage Logistics Cold Storage Complex
Mount Maunganui Cold Storage Facility for Sale
7 in 10 Senior Directors Confident in Data Centres, but Talent Shortage Will Widen

More Sponsored Features>>

Connect with Mingtiandi

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • RSS
  • Twitter

Real Estate News

  • Capital Markets
  • Mingtiandi 2025 Event Calendar
  • MTD TV Archives
  • People
  • Logistics
  • Data Centres
  • Asia Outbound
  • Retail

More Mingtiandi

  • About Mingtiandi
  • Contact Mingtiandi
  • Mingtiandi Memberships
  • Newsletter Subscription
  • Advertise
  • Terms of Use
  • Privacy
  • Join the Mingtiandi Team


© 2007-2025 China Advertising Media Ltd (Samoa). All rights reserved.