London and paris ‘running scared’

Investment returns in Moscow and Istanbul will soon surpass Paris and London, according to a survey of investors, brokers and analysts…

London fell to 15th place out of 27 cities for 2008, from 2nd last year, and Paris dropped to 5th from 1st, the Urban Land Institute and PricewaterhouseCoopers said in a report yesterday. It's the first time the annual survey hasn't ranked London among the top 10 cities in Europe for investment and development.

John Forbes, the London-based head of real estate at PricewaterhouseCoopers, commented: “Optimism and faster growth in emerging markets will push up rents and fuel demand for property. There is an increasing appetite for emerging markets, with Russia and Turkey regarded as the ‘India of Europe’. They are top for economic growth."

William Kistler, president of ULI in Europe, said: "For years it has been recognised that the gap between London and other European cities was pretty significant. People are seeing this as an appropriate correction”.