This article was published on Aug. 4, 2025, at 3:51 p.m. on the ChosunBiz MoneyMove website.
The investment sentiment in logistics centers, which had been suffering from oversupply, is expected to revive in the second half of this year. This is because foreign investors are viewing the cooled market as an opportunity for low-cost acquisitions. It is said that the decline in new supply will lead to a rebound in future revenue.
According to the investment banking (IB) industry on the 4th, global management firms are consecutively purchasing domestic logistics centers. Blackstone, the world's largest private equity fund (PEF) manager, purchased the Gimpo Seonggwang Logistics Center in Gimpo City for approximately 83.5 billion won last November and recently acquired two logistics centers, Gimpo Gochon and Namyangju Hwado. The purchase price for these centers, which house corporations such as GS Networks and Coupang, is reported to be 360 billion won.
Previously, Blackstone entered the domestic market for the first time by acquiring five logistics centers (Able Logistics, Core Logistics, Management, Dongsan, and Buguk) in the southeastern region of Gyeonggi Province in 2016. Afterward, due to the overheated investment competition during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, it sold all five centers at once. Now, after five years, it has resumed investments in logistics centers.
DWS Asset Management, a German asset management firm (formerly Deutsche Asset Management), also participated in the bidding for the sale of the Gonjiam Logistics Center in Gyeonggi Province and was selected as the final acquirer last month. The global PEF operator Warburg Pincus acquired the Samsung Logistics Center in Anseong City, Gyeonggi Province, last March and decided to develop two additional logistics centers, with an expected value of $500 million upon completion. Oaktree Capital, the world's largest non-performing loan (NPL) investment company, also acquired the Hoei-ri Logistics Center in Icheon City, Gyeonggi Province, for the first time in Korea last March.
Industry insiders analyzed that recent high interest rates and economic uncertainty have led to an influx of logistics center listings, prompting foreign investors to view this as an opportunity to acquire quality assets at low prices. According to the global commercial real estate firm Colliers, the proportion of foreign investment in domestic logistics centers increased from 23.8% in 2020 to 32.3% in 2024, and as of April this year, it has significantly risen to 60.5%.
An industry official noted, "The vacancy rates for regular and cold logistics centers in the metropolitan area peaked last year and have turned downward," adding, "At the same time, the new supply area this year has decreased by more than 80% compared to a year ago, resolving the previously ongoing over-supply issue and leading to a forecast of a shortage next year."
Woo Jeong-ha, executive director at JLL Korea (Jones Lang LaSalle), predicted, "As supply decreases, nominal rental prices for logistics centers in the metropolitan area will continue to rise gradually for the time being."
Consequently, there are projections in the market that the logistics center investment sector will recover in the second half of this year. According to a survey conducted by GenstarMate, the largest commercial real estate service company in Korea, among over 70 employees from major domestic real estate investment firms and asset management companies in July, the outlook for recovery in logistics centers for the second half of this year was 47%. This is the first time that recovery expectations have surpassed stagnation expectations (36%) since the first half of 2022.
An industry representative stated, "Domestic investors are either already tied up with existing logistics centers or are still holding a conservative outlook," and explained, "Foreign investors with ample capital appear to be more proactive." He continued, "The demand for cold storage remains limited, but there are movements to invest in cold storage and convert them to room temperature." Expectations for the recovery of the investment market in the second half of the year are rising.