SEGRO has reported that occupier demand during the third quarter saw it sign contracts totalling £15.3m, up 21% on Q3 2018.
However, the total £48.6m of the leasing deals agreed for the nine months to the end of September is around 6% below last year.
So far in 2019 the industrial developer has completed more than 8m sq ft of new developments, capable of generating £33.7m of headline rent and of which 88% has been leased.
The company is expecting to complete developments capable of producing a further £15.1m of headline rent in the fourth quarter, of which £12.7m has already been secured.
SEGRO added in its trading update that £7.7m of prelet agreements had been signed in Q3, a 108% uplift on Q3 2018, to the tenants, including online food retailer Ocado, home improvements retailer Leroy Merlin and consumer appliance retailer TERG.
It has a a further 6.9m sq ft under construction, equating to potential future headline rent of £46m of which 63% has been secured.
Vacancy rate across SEGRO’s portfolio sits at 4.9%, while the company’s net debt including its share of joint ventures stood at £2.7bn at the end of September.
SEGRO chief executive David Sleath said: “SEGRO continues to benefit from the structural trends of urbanisation and technological revolution, and despite the uncertain macro-economic backdrop at this time, we head into the final part of the year with confidence.
“Looking ahead, the combination of new rental income from the development programme, compounded with the benefits of active asset management of our existing portfolio, should enable us to drive sustainable growth in both earnings and dividends.”
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