Industrial Demand Forecast Decreases as Economy Slows

Posted on August 19, 2019

By Dr. Hany Guirguis and Dr. Joshua Harris

The NAIOP Research Foundation has published the NAIOP Industrial Space Demand Forecast for Q3 2019.

Key Takeaways

  • The forecast for net industrial space demand has decreased amid slower growth in the U.S. economy. Absorption is now expected to average 37 million square feet per quarter for the next two years. This is a significant slowdown from the average 60 million square feet of quarterly net absorption experienced during 2017 and 2018.  
  • The average quarterly completions fell to 42 million square feet in the first half of 2019, down from an average of 54 million square feet per quarter during 2017 and 2018. Supply and demand are likely to stay in balance for the industrial sector; therefore, rents and vacancy rates should remain stable in many markets nationwide. 
  • A recession is not likely in the near term, but a general slowdown appears already underway; the first report of GDP growth in the second quarter fell to 2.1% from the 3.1% annualized result of the first quarter.
View the Forecast
Share this post: