UK commercial real estate values show slight pick-up - CBRE

LONDON, April 18 (Reuters) - UK commercial real estate values rose by 0.6% in March, showing gains for the first time since June 2022, according to the CBRE Monthly Index published on Tuesday. The pick-up in March was not enough to offset falls in January and February, CBRE said, meaning that capital values fell 0.3% overall in the first quarter of 2023. "The March Monthly Index results showed a modest upturn, positive signs against an eight-month backdrop of downward movement in commercial real estate values," said Jennet Siebrits, head of UK research at CBRE. "It's too early to predict whether this is the start of a recovery." Retail capital values increased 1.1% in March, mostly driven by retail warehouses rising 1.8%, CBRE said. Values in the office sector fell 0.3% in March and lost 1.5% in the quarter overall, while the industrial sector saw capital values rise 1.3% in March and end the quarter little changed, CBRE said. Last month's global banking turmoil has exacerbated concerns about the commercial property sector, although JPMorgan analysts said in March that Europe's bank are less at risk from the problems in commercial real estate markets than their U.S. counterparts. Property in the UK was already under pressure from rising interest rates, lower demand for office space and recession fears.

(Reporting by Elizabeth Howcroft, editing by Sinead Cruise and Ed Osmond)