Why industrial real estate prospects may weaken

While industrial real estate performance is expected to remain strong in the near term, longer-term prospects are more uncertain. Three specific factors – shifts in e-commerce trends, technological advancement, and decarbonisation policies – will have a profound effect on industrial real estate from 2030 onwards.

What you will learn:

• Near-term volatility aside, we anticipate that online sales growth will stabilise in most economies in the medium term – halfway through our 25-year forecast period in some instances – taking some of the steam out of e-commerce industrial demand.
• Advancements in automation and robots are being integrated into industrial environments. As new technologies are incorporated into the sector, we expect the efficiencies gained will further reduce aggregate demand for industrial real estate.
• Given its lower energy intensity and shallower decarbonisation pathway, industrial – and warehouse and logistics spaces in particular – is best positioned for net-zero targets, relative to other sectors.