Retail rents highest in Paris, London, Moscow and Dublin says JLL

The next most expensive are Stoleshnikov Lane in Moscow and New Bond Street in London, with Moscow’s Petrovka Street and Tverskaya not far behind.

Strong demand from an increasingly wealthy population, a shortage of available space and a low level of transparency mean that Moscow rents are expected to stay strong, says JLL’s report.

Additionally, the primary cities of Greece and Turkey saw some of the highest rental increases with Tsimiski Street in Thessaloniki, Ermou Street in Athens as well as Bagdat and Istiklal Streets in Istanbul all recording an annual growth of over 25% (mitigated somewhat in Turkey by inflation at 10%).

This is due largely to a limited supply but strong demand for units, particularly from international brands.

In the 12 months since the start of the credit crunch, almost 70% of all locations assessed within the report registered some level of rental growth between Q2 2007 and Q2 2008.

Neville Moss, head of European Retail research at Jones Lang LaSalle said: ‘Several prominent locations in mature markets, particularly Germany and The Netherlands, are also anticipated to see solid rental growth through the year despite a projected slowdown in the economy, again largely thanks to major International brands seeking representation and a scarce supply of prime space.

‘Meanwhile, the outlook is less favourable for areas such as the Baltic States, where retail is concentrated within shopping centres and their economies face particular imbalance. A handful of western European locations, are also expected to see some downward pressure on rents, most notably in Spain.'