The office property market did not see an upswing in absorption during the quarter ended September 2015, with total absorption at 10.6 million square feet almost flat compared to 10.5 million square feet in the previous quarter ended June 2015.
On the positive side, the total office absorption for the first nine months of calendar 2015 saw an 11% increase at 30 million square feet, from 27 million during the same period in 2014.
During the September 2015 quarter, Gurgaon had the lion's share among eight cities, at 23%, followed by Chennai (20%) and Bengaluru (18%), according to Colliers India Office Property Market Review for the quarter.
It's the second time Bengaluru has lagged in office space absorption. During the June quarter, too, the city's share was 22%, below that of Mumbai (28%) and Delhi NCR (24%).
On the other hand, Chennai saw a spike in its share, from 7% of the total absorption in the June quarter to 20% in the September quarter.
"With a number of deals at an advanced stage, we anticipate momentum in the office market to continue. Cities like Bengaluru, Gurgaon and Mumbai will witness maximum office uptake in the coming quarter," said the review.
The trend in the September quarter in terms of industry profile was similar, with services accounting for a major share of office space occupied, and manufacturing accounting for a minuscule portion.
In Mumbai, the pharma sector absorbed about 34% of the 1.4 million square feet office space, followed by BFSI (33%), with manufacturing lagging at a distant 10%.
The Bandra Kurla Complex remained the most preferred location, with a share of 32% of the total space bought, followed by Lower Parel.
In Delhi, the maximum share was that of the IT/ITeS sector at 33% of the total absorption, followed by BFSI (30%) and manufacturing (15%).
Some of the big-ticket transactions were by HP (60,000 sq ft), VFS Global (50,000 sq ft), Airbus (32,000 sq ft) and Bharti Softbank (20,000 sq ft); all were lease transactions.
No new commercial project was launched during the quarter in Delhi.
The region saw a 24% growth at 0.33 million square feet during the September quarter from 0.27 million square feet during the June quarter.
Gurgaon registered an impressive growth of 18% over the June quarter, with space absorption during the September quarter at 2.1 million square feet.
Some of the big-ticket transactions were by Google India, Samsung, American Express and SpiceJet — all on lease — according to the review.
