Covid Roils Shanghai’s Commercial Property Market in Fourth Quarter

Shanghai saw a decline in rents and a rise in vacancy rates for office space in the fourth quarter of 2022, as commercial activity in China’s financial capital was disrupted by a new wave of coronavirus infections and a sudden U-turn on the “zero-Covid” policy.

Daily rent for office space in Shanghai averaged 7.63 yuan ($1.13) per square meter in the fourth quarter, a decline of 0.3% from the previous quarter, according to data released in a report by commercial property consultancy Colliers International Group Inc. on Friday. The number for all of 2022 was also 7.63 yuan per square meter, down 0.6% from the previous year.