Jones Lang LaSalle reported that the vacancy rate of Grade A offices in Central rose to 12.1% by the end of June, mainly driven by the impact of newly completed office buildings.

At the end of June, the overall vacancy rate for Grade A office buildings rose to 13.6%. In contrast, the vacancy rates in Tsim Sha Tsui and Kowloon East fell by 0.4 and 0.2 percentage points, respectively, due to a decrease in available office space for rent. It is worth noting that the overall market recorded a net absorption of negative 53,700 square feet in June.

Jones Lang LaSalle's Managing Director and Head of Commercial Department in Hong Kong, Gavin Morgan, said that the possibility of a significant rent rollback or a price war in office space is still low. In the traditional business districts, most of the office supply is held by a few major landlords, giving them immense bargaining power.

Jones Lang LaSalle's Senior Director in Research, Maggie Chung, pointed out that in June, the monthly rental of the Grade A office market fell by 0.6%, and the rental decreased by a cumulative 4.3% in the first half of the year. Among the main regional markets, the rents in Central and Kowloon East fell by 0.8% and 0.6%, respectively, while those in Tsim Sha Tsui and Hong Kong Island East fell by 0.3% and 0.4%, respectively.