Rush for office space in Metro Manila continues in Q315

Premium and Grade A office space takeup in Metro Manila's main business districts (CBDs) continued to accelerate in Q315 due to strong pre-leasing activity, according to the most recent Office Briefing published by Savills international associate KMC MAG Group, a Philippines real estate services firm.

More than 200,000 sq m (232,961) was newly delivered in Q3, and almost everything was snapped up, at 231,412 sq m - a record takeup rate. 

"Most of the new spaces delivered have been pre-leased prior to completion; that is why takeup is very high," said Michael McCullough, KMC MAG Managing Director.

Upcoming supply is estimated to reach around 1.8-million sq m in 2018. Despite the significant amount of supply, KMC MAG says that overall office rental and vacancy rates are expected to remain stable given the strong pre-leasing activity.

"We continue to see interest from both local and foreign firms across all CBDs, although most of the interest is currently in Bonifacio Global City (BGC) only because it is where most of the new supply will come from," said McCullough.

"The profiles of companies who have pre-leased or are currently pre-leasing space vary across all CBDs. Ortigas, Bay Area, and Quezon City are very attractive to new IT-BPO firms who are just starting to outsource services and processes to the Philippines because of the lower rates.

"Makati remains the CBD of choice for large-scale enterprises who want to upgrade their headquarters and move to a better location, however many firms are forced to look towards BGC due to the lack of available and suitable space."

Thanks to the sustained IT-BPO industry demand and the relatively low level of new supply in these areas, Bay Area and Quezon City are projected to have the lowest vacancy rates and strongest rental rate growth among the business districts within the next 12 months.

In Q3, the Bay Area recorded a 17% year on year (YoY) rental rate growth, with Grade A rentals averaging from Php673.4 to Php700 per sq m/month and an ultra-low 1.3% vacancy rate.

Meanwhile, Quezon City posted an 8.5% YoY growth, with average Grade A office rates ranging from Php700.4 to Php750.0 per sq m/month. Located in the northernmost part of Metro Manila, Quezon City boasts vacancy rates of under 1% with only 0.2% of its total stock unoccupied, making it the best performing CBD in the country this quarter.

Makati, on the other hand, remains as the premium CBD, posting a 4.3% YoY growth with the highest asking net Grade A rental rates averaging Php 979.1 to Php 1400.0 per sq m/month. In spite of this, Makati's vacancy rate remains low at 3%, and is likely to become lower once Tower 6789 becomes fully occupied.

BGC comes in next, with a rental growth of 3.7% YoY and an average asking rental rate of Php860.4 to Php1,100 per sq m/month. The district's vacancy rate increased slightly to 2.6%; however, it should be noted that this is because it has absorbed most of the new demand, allowing it to post its highest recorded quarterly takeup since Q114 of 49,639 sq m.

Ortigas' growth remains strong at 6.8% YoY, bringing average rental rates up to Php624.6 per sq m/month, with an upper rate of Php750 per sq m/month. Ortigas' strong rental growth is expected to continue, given its current 2.5% vacancy rate and lack of new supply until the end of 2016.

Alabang is the only CBD office market with sluggish growth. YoY growth was 0.6% and vacancy rates 16%. This brought down the average asking rental rates to Php 605.3per sq m/month in Q315 from Php601.8 per sq m/month a year ago.

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Foodpanda launches premium delivery service in Singapore CBD

Source: foodpanda website.

Celebrating its 3rd anniversary in Singapore this year, foodpanda Singapore has launched a premium delivery service with nearly 50 outlets covering the central business district. The service is targeted at busy working professionals who are looking to enjoy a variety of food without having to leave the comfort of their desks.

The new service comes a month after a recent funding round of US$110 million, and is part of the company's promise to optimise the user experience and improve customer service. Customers selecting the service receive their food within 60 minutes of placing their orders while paying up to 50% less in delivery charges.

“Foodpanda understands the dynamics of a fast-paced working environment, where we see a rising trend of people opting for convenient solutions of having takeout meals while at work without compromising choice or quality. As the leading platform in offering the widest selection of deliverable food options, we strive to ease the lives of our customers by simply delivering the food you love to wherever you are,” explains Cassandra Ong, Marketing Director of foodpanda Singapore.

“We constantly listen to the feedback of our customers as well as delivery riders. So besides welcoming additional restaurant partners to the foodpanda family to give our customers an even greater choice, we followed the call for shorter delivery time at a lower price tag. This is an initiative we have been working on since late last year and we are really excited to finally roll it out now as a gift to our treasured customers.”

Since foodpanda started in Singapore three years ago, it has signed up over 400 restaurants. Its latest additions are Burger King, Chicken Up, Hardrock Café, Manhattan’s Fish Market, Nando’s, Shihlin Taiwan Street Snacks, Shin-Sapporo Ramen and Timbre.

On a global level, foodpanda, together with its affiliated brands, focuses on emerging markets, operating in 40 countries across five continents. Foodpanda is active in over 580 cities around the world, operating in 12 of the largest 20 metropolises, and partnering with over 60,000 restaurants.

The company operates under the foodpanda brand in Thailand, Indonesia, Pakistan, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, Vietnam, Taiwan, Bangladesh, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, and the Philippines. The hellofood brand operates in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, and Qatar. In India, foodpanda serves companies with both the foodpanda and Tastykhana brands.