Take-up of logistics floorspace in the north west in the first nine months of this year is 55% up on last year, whilst the supply of floorspace is down 38% compared to this time last year, and down 48% on the market peak.

More staggering still, take-up in Q3 was a full 404% up on Q2’s regional figure.

The latest industrial market data dump from Cushman & Wakefield shows the north west’s cliff-edge drop in supply was the sharpest of all the UK regions.

North west take-up in Q3 reached 1.4M SF, with take-up of 3.5M SF over the first nine months of 2020.

Nationwide the third quarter of 2020 was the busiest on record with 16M SF transacted, with e-commerce accounting for 40% of take-up. Amazon’s expansion, including a single 2.3M SF letting at Panattoni Park in Swindon, saw the retailer sign the largest deal of Q3 and account for one-third of all 2020 take-up so far, a total of 11.5M SF.

“Speculative development has slowed, which means this imbalance could persist. There are signs that prime rental growth could return as a result, particularly for mid-box units,” Cushman & Wakefield Head of UK Logistics Richard Evans said.