This shopping mecca has the priciest rents

New York has unseated Hong Kong for the dubious distinction as the world’s most expensive shopping destination, according to a fascinating new report examining 330 markets worldwide.

After New York’s upper Fifth Avenue area and Hong Kong’s Causeway Bay, other pricey markets include the Avenue des Champs Elysees in Paris, New Bond Street in London and Pitt Street Mall in Sydney. Those areas were followed by Via Montenapoleone in Milan, Ginza in Japan, Myeongdong in Seoul, Bahnhofstrasse in Zurich and Stoleshnikov in Moscow, according to Cushman & Wakefield’s annual research report examining occupancy costs around the world.

While all of the top 10 markets are high-end, there is a wide disparity between top-ranked New York’s Upper Fifth area, where rents reached a record $3,500 a square foot and Hong Kong’s Causeway Bay at $2,735 and others in the top 10. For example, 10th ranked Moscow and 9th ranked Zurich seem like relative bargains at $557 and $875 a square foot, respectively, according to the report from the global real estate adviser.

Overall, the firm said prime retail rents across the globe rose by an average of 2.4% in the 12 month period ended September 2014 with rental rates flat or up in 277 of the 330 locations surveyed. "New York is once again the most expensive shopping destination in the world and for the first time since 2011. Upper Fifth Avenue also set a new record for the highest retail rents ever recorded. Global gateway markets continue to surge ahead as major brands battle for premier addresses in the top cities,” said John Strachan, global head of retail at Cushman & Wakefield.

Hong Kong slipped in the rankings as retailers showed caution in expanding in the face of moderating sales and less exuberant consumption from mainland visitors. Mass protests which clogged city streets more recently didn’t help either. To view the report, click HERE.