Sofia’s industrial and logistic areas posted a nine per cent mark-up year-on-year in rental prices, which places Bulgarian capital among Europe’s 10 cities with fastest price growth, a recent survey by Cushman&Wakefield (C&W) international property consultants showed.

The ongoing lack of supply continues to constrain the market, although take-up levels did rise over the course of 2007. Demand from both domestic and international companies is focused on Sofia and surrounding area, which have superior transport links. However, Plovdiv, the main traditional industrial area, is also growing in popularity. Owner occupation is high due to the lack of modern stock, but developers are now beginning to build speculatively.

Currently, Bulgaria’s average annual rentals for industrial space stand at 73 euro a sq m, translating into six euro a sq m a month, which puts the country in 32nd place in the C&W global ranking, one slot down from the previous year’s standing, which could be attributed to the serious rental rise in a number of countries outside Europe.