Office rent in Tokyo most expensive

SINGAPORE: Tokyo leapfrogged London, Moscow and Hong Kong to become the world's most expensive city in terms of office rentals as financial institutions reduced their demand for space, CB Richard Ellis (CBRE) said yesterday.

According to CBRE's semi-annual Global Office Occupancy Costs survey, Tokyo's Inner Central region commanded the highest rents at $183.62 per square foot (psf) ($1976.5 per square meter) per annum, higher than the $172.62 average charged by landlords in London's West End.

"Financial centers have been most significantly affected by declining occupier demand and, as one would expect, registered the most material decreases in office rents," CBRE said in a statement.