Over €11bn to be spent on shopping centres in Central Europe until 2013 - August 2011

Around 6 million m2 of new GLA is planned to be completed in Central European countries through to 2013. Most of the shopping centres openings are to occur from 2012, assuming that all projects are finalised on time. The existing investment plan could absorb over €11bn, according to PMR estimates. Bulgaria and Romania increased most dynamically in terms of GLA over the last three years and are expected to continue to develop considerably. Poland remains an attractive destination for investors, and will offer the most substantial amount of new space launched by 2013 amongst all the Central European countries analysed.

The Central European shopping centre market, increased by 50% in terms of GLA over the last three years and totalled nearly 12 million m2 at the end of 2010. This uplift could have been even higher if the financial crisis had not limited the ambitious plans of developers and retailers, as well as customer expectations and customer purchasing power.