Office vacancy rates in China are rising as foreign companies pull out and domestic firms scale back their leased space. According to a second-quarter comparison by Japanese real estate services firm CBRE of 20 cities worldwide, Shanghai topped the list with a vacancy rate of 24.5 percent, while Beijing ranked eighth at 17.9 percent.
Citing Nikkei Chinese, the report said Shanghai’s vacancy rate has risen 5.1 percentage points since the fourth quarter of 2019, before the COVID-19 outbreak. That was the steepest increase among major global cities, compared with 3.8 points in New York, 0.7 points in Tokyo and 2.6 points in London.
One factor is foreign divestment. Data from China’s State Administration of Foreign Exchange showed net foreign direct investment inflows of US$26.6 billion in the second quarter, down 23 percent from the first quarter. Beyond Western firms, some Japanese companies have also reduced investment in China amid worsening China-Japan relations.
Shanghai’s Lujiazui financial district still glitters at night when viewed from the Bund. However, a Chinese social media influencer recently exposed the reality of lights left on for appearances. Visiting an office tower near the Oriental Pearl Tower at night, his video showed at least five empty offices with lights on only near the windows.
The problem has spread inland. In Chongqing, one vacant office of roughly 200 square meters had a partly collapsed floor and cables hanging from the ceiling, with the name of its last tenant still on the door. A notice outside advertised only a “discounted price,” with no figure given, and said the rent was negotiable.
Most Chinese office buildings are owned by state-owned enterprises, so vacancies do not immediately hurt their finances. But rising vacancies in their high-yield properties and oversupply would push rents down, putting pressure on privately owned offices. Caixin recently reported that a 20 percent vacancy rate is widely seen as the “red line” for urban office oversupply.
Source: Central News Agency (Taiwan), October 20, 2026
https://www.cna.com.tw/news/acn/202610200318.aspx