Annual volume of leased floor-space in 2018 was 3.7 million sq m. The market grew by a further 2 million sq m while nearly 2 million sq m of space is under construction. Last year also saw record-breaking total for industrial investment transactions - worth 1.84 billion EUR.
Demand - large appetite amongst tenants
The Polish industrial market once again came in with an excellent performance in 2018, giving investors cause for optimism for 2019. Total demand of 960,000 sq m transacted in Q4 boosted the annual volume of leased floor-space to 3.7 million sq m, the second best result in the sector's history. Net demand, i.e. not taking into account renewals, totalled 2.9 million sq m. A significant amount of new demand in 2018 was concentrated in the three largest markets, namely Warsaw, Upper Silesia and Central Poland, with a total of over 1.5 million sq m of space transacted in the three locations.
Tomasz Mika, Head of Industrial Poland, JLL
Selected transactions in 2018
| Tenant | Park | Space (sq m) |
| Leroy Merlin | Panattoni BTS Piątek | 124,000 |
| Zalando | Hillwood BTS Olsztynek | 121,000 |
| Confidential tenant | Panattoni BTS Krzywe | 61,000 |
| Confidential tenant | Panattoni BTS Łódź | 45,000 |
| Arvato | Panattoni Park Stryków III | 43,000 |
Source: JLL, www.magazyny.pl, 2018
Once again, the most active tenants came from two sectors - logistics operators and retailers. The former leased more than 1 million sq m of new space during 2018, accounting for 35% of total net demand. The share of retailers was not much less, standing at 32%. Light manufacturing and the automotive sector together accounted for some 16% of total net take-up. These percentages should remain stable in the following quarters.
Maciej Kotowski, Consultant, Research and Consulting, JLL
Supply - developers still active
It all adds up to an existing stock of 15.7 million sq m at the end of 2018, which is three times as much as ten years ago. The supply pipeline remains at a very healthy level. By the end of last year nearly 2 million sq m of new space remained under construction in Poland, most of which is being developed in Upper Silesia, which accounted for almost 420,000 sq m. The largest projects to be completed in the next few quarters are warehouses for e-commerce giants in Gliwice and Olsztynek.
Maciej Kotowski, Consultant, Research and Consulting, JLL
Rents are rising, vacancy rates remain relatively unaffected
In some of the most attractive locations one could see an increase in rents, especially in the case of effective values, i.e. taking into account the incentives offered by developers. This is mostly influenced by increasing construction costs and land prices.
Tomasz Mika, Head of Industrial Poland, JLL
Record-breaking industrial investments
In 2018, up to 90 parks with almost 3.2 million sq m of total space changed hands, representing over 20% of total existing stock in Poland. The value of industrial investment transactions reached an historically high 1.84 billion EUR, with a significant proportion accounted for by large portfolio transactions. As for next year, we expect the market to continue with a great deal of activity amongst investors, driven by both large portfolios and smaller, single assets. At the same time new sources of capital emerge, and investors open to counter-trend trading begin to be active.
Tomasz Puch, Head of Office and Industrial Investment, JLL
