State-owned reinsurer China Re rents floor at Two IFC, upgrades offices at same price as previous lease

The new lease ‘is an upgrade and an expansion’ for China Re, Centaline’s Ernest Tse says

Flight to quality and companies going back to Central are likely to be the dominant trends in Hong Kong’s office property segment in 2024

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The Two IFC space was previously leased by Funde Asset Management (Hong Kong), which paid HK$175 per square foot for the space. Photo: EPA

Published: 8:00am, 20 Jan 2024

State-owned reinsurance company China Re Asset Management is moving to the 41st floor of Hong Kong’s Two International Finance Centre (Two IFC) in Central, where it has leased 6,740 sq ft for the same price it paid for its previous offices in Three Exchange Square.

China Re will pay HK$150 (US$19.18) per square foot a month for the Two IFC space, the same rate it paid for its offices in Three Exchange Square, Centaline Property Agency said.

“The company used to rent 5,000 sq ft on the 12th floor of Three Exchange Square, which it leased three years ago,” said Ernest Tse, the senior principal sales director in Centaline’s commercial office department. “And although they are paying the same lease rate, they will now be on a higher floor.”

The Two IFC lease “is an upgrade and an expansion” for China Re, he added.

The reinsurer will, however, shell out more for the Two IFC space, at about HK$1.011 million per month, as compared to Three Exchange Square, where it paid HK$750,000 in monthly rent.

Flight to quality and companies going back to Hong Kong’s main business zone of Central are likely to be the dominant trends in the city’s office property segment this year, Tse said, adding that high vacancy rates are driving down rents.