India’s outbound capital into commercial real estate increases by 92 pct in 12 months to $0.7 bn: Knight Frank

India’s outbound capital into commercial real estate increased by 92 per cent to $0.7bn in 12 months to Q1 2019, finds Knight Frank's 2019 edition of its flagship report, Active Capital. United Kingdom, Netherlands, Germany, United States of America and Australia were the top destination countries of Indian capital investments.  Inbound cross border investment volumes into Indian commercial real estate accounted to $2.6bn in 12 months to Q1 2019. Knight Frank’s Active Capital 2019  report delves into the sources and destinations of cross-border investments in commercial real estate and highlights five themes shaping the next phase of global real estate investment: late cycle investing, capital gravity, the reinvention of capital, ‘ownership’ and the value of data.

Speaking on the research report findings Neil Brookes, Asia-Pacific Head of Capital Markets, Knight Frank, said, “In the past 12 months, outbound capital from Asia-Pacific, and Singapore in particular, has sought out alternative asset classes in Western markets while reducing their exposure to retail assets in the region, previously thought of as a core asset class.” 

Shishir Baijal, Chairman & Managing Director, Knight Frank India, said, “With geopolitical factors coming into play, prolonged global economic cycle and interest rate in late cycle investment is prompting cross-border capital flows. The Indian investors are increasingly looking at international commercial real estate assets to diversify risk and increase their returns.” The Knight Frank report discusses the implications for real estate investors in the late cycle environment, arguing that many markets will not see returns hit recent highs.