London office is no longer the most expensive in the world, according to new research.
A study of office space prices across the globe conducted by CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) found that Tokyo is now the most costly location, with prime office priced at $183.62/sq ft.
Meanwhile, the average price of centrally located office space in London now stands at $172.62/sq ft. This compares with a figure of almost $300/sq ft 12 months ago.
Dr Raymond Torto, CBRE’s global chief economist, said: “The great global recession has clearly taken its toll on the world’s office markets, particularly those with significant concentrations of financial industry employers.
“The most expensive office markets, as measured in dollars, are considerably less expensive than a year ago and occupiers are now in a strong position to procure prime space at attractive costs.”
News of the decline in London office space prices comes just weeks after analysts from CBRE forecast that as much as 19 per cent of all offices in the City of London could be vacant during 2010.