Rents of retail properties in Shanghai's specialized commercial areas rose rapidly, some even hitting 100 percent, despite a modest growth citywide in the past few years, a latest survey showed.
The study attributed the rapid growth to the areas' popularity as shopping venues due to their distinct personality and their maturity.
"We found rents in some new specialized shopping areas grew very fast, and some old specialized stores also witnessed jumps in rentals compared with shops in other areas," said Pu Zujian, director of the Management Office of Commercial Network of Shanghai.
The study was based on a three-month survey of rents of more than 1,000 shops. The shops were located along 139 roads or areas in 12 districts.
The report revealed specialized shopping streets near central shopping venues like Xujiahui or Huaihai Road M experienced rapid growth as people were attracted by their distinct characteristics. These venues were also more mature and had a shopping atmosphere quite unlike other areas.
The annual growth in rent of retail properties in Xintiandi, for instance, was 100 percent from 2000 to 2004 while for Hongji Plaza near the Grand Gateway Plaza at Xujiahui the figure hit 22.2 percent during the same period, the report said.
Retail property rents at Wujiang Road dining street and the Hengshan Road bar and dining street jumped 16.7 percent during the same period.
Currently, the rents averaged more than 20 yuan (US$2.4) per square meter per day on Wujiang Road.
Rents of retail properties on Yandang Road leisure and dining street in Luwan District rose 12.5 percent annually from 2000 to 2004.
"Given the rising demand, the city's rents of retail properties have grown modestly," said Jiang Xinguo, an official with Shanghai Zaihang Estate Investment Advisory Co Ltd, which also participated in the survey. "While the annual growth of retail property rents averaged 10 percent, specialized streets outperformed average ones as people want distinct elements."
The survey also showed that rents of retail space at the city's central shopping areas range from 38 yuan per square meter per day to 48 yuan per square meter per day.