Office space leasing, which was severely affected during the initial months of the Covid-19 pandemic, has picked up in the third quarter (Q3) of this calendar year (CY20).
The absorption of commercial office space rose 64 per cent in Q3 of CY20 versus the second quarter (Q2), property consultant JLL India said on Monday.
The Q3 office rebound growth was led by Bengaluru and Hyderabad, which together accounted for nearly 80 per cent of the net absorption in Q3.
The activity in Bengaluru indicates a gradual resurgence in spaces, coupled with the translation of pent-up demand from Q2 this year, added JLL.
On a yearly basis, the absorption of spaces has fallen 50 per cent, from 10 million square (sq.) feet (ft) in Q3 last year to 5.4 million sq. ft in Q3 this year.
However, this year will be lacklustre for office leasing due to the pandemic-triggered lockdowns. Around 17.5-million sq. ft office leasing has happened so far and is expected to touch 25 million sq. ft by the end of the year. On average, 35-million sq. ft gets absorbed every year.
Technology giants, such as Apple, Siemens, Google and others, too, have leased large spaces in Bengaluru and Hyderabad. Apple has leased 400,000 sq. ft space in the Central Business district of Bengaluru, while Siemens has leased 730,000 sq. ft in the Karnataka capital. Google took 1 million sq. ft in Bagmane RIO in Bengaluru early this year. Accenture took 650,000 sq. ft in Prestige Startech in Bengaluru.
Investment banking major Goldman Sachs is opening a centre in Hyderabad. This will be its second India office.