MARK Capital Management

MARK Capital Management CEO Marcus Meijer was on CNBC Squawk Box Europe this morning to discuss how the European Central Bank's rate cut could prove a "catalyst" for real estate. Key takeaways: 📉 "Downward path" for interest rates will open up liquidity in European markets, with the US Federal Reserve also expected to announce a cut this month 📊 Yields "for the right product in the right place" have bottomed out and, in some locations, already started to come in 🌆 Creating a product that "people are really attracted to and is unique" is the best way to "secure your downside" for a project like The Whiteley London 🏭 Our "biggest conviction" right now is urban logistics, which has favourable demand-supply dynamics and faces less political and regulatory headwinds compared to other sectors

A “window of opportunity” is opening up in global real estate over the next 12 to 18 months, according to Oxford Economics, with late 2024 and 2025 offering the best “entry point” for investors wanting to capture the recovery in real estate. Encouragingly, Europe - where MARK Capital Management has been investing for 20 years - is reportedly “leading the way” in the recovery. Read more on Oxford Economics' research in IPE Real Assets:

"Perhaps it really is cool to be cool." A recent Forbes piece highlights how the emerging travel trend of 'coolcationing' (international tourists choosing cooler climates as a result of climate change) is driving increased interest in the Norwegian capital Oslo, where MARK Capital Management manages a portfolio of prime retail and office properties. Forbes argues that the financial performance of Steen & Strøm (S&S), the world's oldest continuously running department stores and the 'jewel-in-the-crown' of our local Promenaden Management platform, is proof of 'coolcationing' reshaping markets. S&S reported a 14% increase in H1 sales this year, and the first three months of 2024 represented its best-ever quarter, with sales from tax-free shopping up 32% on a yearly basis. Visitors from the US, China, the UK, Australia and Indonesia were the main source of international shopping. Read the full article here:

Interviewed by IPE Real Assets, our CEO Marcus Meijer told the publication that the election of Donald Trump would see "the process of deglobalisation [continuing], which will lead to a reordering of supply chains, in turn driving demand for logistics space. The last-mile segment is particularly competitive thanks to a lack of supply and land availability, so this will only fuel rental growth further." Through Crossbay, we've been investing in urban logistics since 2018. Read christopher walker's feature on what the US presidential election may mean for real assets here:

#ICYMI: Our CEO Marcus Meijer recently appeared on CNBC to discuss the outlook for European real estate investment. Marcus was interviewed on the day that the European Central Bank decided to cut base rates to 3.50%, the second successive reduction following its decision in June to reduce rates to 3.75%. Financing pressures and uncertainty around the future trajectory of interest rates have been two of the biggest factors holding back liquidity in the European real estate markets over the last few years, with a lower rate environment widely expected to ease these pressures significantly. A downward path for global financing costs was further illuminated by the US Federal Reserve's decision last week. We are now starting to see capital to return to real estate in increasing volume and liquidity open up. This is especially true for sectors that have already weathered the downturn well, such as urban logistics, which remains our highest conviction sector and we have active in since 2018 through Crossbay.

Forbes has profiled Steen & Strøm, the world's oldest continuously running department store, which has just celebrated its strongest ever H1 figures. Kevin Rozario notes how tax-free shopping, a trend of 'coolcationing' and investment from MARK Capital Management into the store and the wider area through our Promenaden platform had all contributed to record sales. Our investment has led to the opening of a new tech hall, as well as the addition of many of the world's leading luxury brands. David Wilkinson of Promenaden commented: “We are working hard to capture this heightened interest in Oslo as a shopping and travel destination by investing significantly. We’ve found that retail shoppers are increasingly attracted to experiences, and the Tech Hall, with events program and working and meeting areas, are designed to encourage community engagement.” Read the full piece here: https://lnkd.in/eyq8-JWZ

#ICYMI We took a closer look at one of our flagship schemes in our historic urban mixed-use value-add strategy, 60 Dawson Street and Grafton Place.

There’s more evidence of logistics being an asset class well-poised to benefit from current market conditions in European commercial real estate. This is a particularly attractive opportunity for managers with a pan-European presence, that are well-capitalised, and have experience in assembling portfolios at different points in market cycles - such as Crossbay. Consecutive falls in overall commercial property values are expected to soon turn a corner, as the second quarter of 2024 recorded the smallest drop in values since mid-2022. New data from Altus Group shows that values fell by just 0.06% from Q1 2024, an indication that a downtrend in values observable since Q3 2024 is ending. The industrials sector recorded the highest value growth at 0.5% over the quarter, driven in large part by above average improvement in market rents at 1.4%. This growth was observable across most European countries. This positive sentiment towards European real estate has been echoed in other recent reports from the likes of Savills, CBRE and JLL. Read in Green Street News: Europe below.

Our CEO Marcus Meijer was invited by PERE to share his thoughts on what the US Presidential election would mean for private real estate. In his commentary, he said: "If there is a Trump victory, all eyes in Europe will be on what he does regarding the Ukraine conflict. There's an argument that a negotiated end to the conflict could provide near-term stability and boost investor confidence but that is not guaranteed - it depends on the shape of the deal. "I think regardless of who wins, the process of deglobalisation will continue, and that will drive the reshaping of supply chains and in turn occupier demand for logistics space, which will feed into investor interest. This is especially true for Europe, which is arguably the most globalised region and in greatest need of near-shoring manufacturing capabilities." Through our pan-European urban logistics platform Crossbay, we are investing in the last-mile segment, targeting single-user distribution centres in gateway cities. Read the full article by Harrison Connery:

Queensway, London, could be about to "knock Notting Hill off its perch", argues The Evening Standard, crediting MARK's regeneration of the area as being essential to this. They cite the transformative role of "landmark developments", namely The Whiteley London - which includes the UK's first Six Senses Hotel, luxury residential apartments, and commercial and leisure offerings including 19 already-committed brands. Our £1bn regeneration of The Whiteley is being delivered through a joint venture with CC Land as part of the wider regeneration of Queensway parade, where we are a key partner. The Queensway regeneration will see the arrival of Parisian-style street pavilions, a new public entrance to the adjacent Hyde Park, the part-pedestrianisation of roads, new and renovated restaurant, retail, leisure and office buildings, and much more. Read the full article below.