The real estate investment firm said its volumes broke new levels last year and reflected on the types of market it reckons should be strong in 2018.

Savills Investment Management yesterday reported that it logged a record-breaking €5.5 billion ($6.75 billion) in turnover last year, with the UK, Italy and Japan proving to be particularly busy markets.

The firm saw total activity of €4.5 billion in Europe and EUR 1 billion in Asia. Markets in which Savills IM was particularly active included the UK, Italy and Japan, where volumes were €1.73 billion, €919 million and €845 million respectively.

The firm said it has more than €1 billion available to invest in new assets in Europe and Asia in 2018. The firm has an additional €887 million in exclusivity heading into 2018.

There were 147 individual and portfolio transactions across 17 countries, it continued.

The €2.95 billion of sales represented a mixture of disposals from the German mutual funds, such as the sale of a €480 million European office portfolio.  There was also an element of profit taking in accordance with asset and fund business plan. Examples of which include the sale of a retail asset in Berlin out of the Europe II fund and a logistics asset in Berger, Norway as part of the Nordic Logistic Fund II as well as the €365m sale of mixed-office developments in Italy and two sizeable office assets in Tokyo, Savills IM said in its statement.

Savills IM had a bias towards logistics in 2017, purchasing over €500 million of assets across Europe and over €150 million of this was purchased in Poland on behalf of a strategic partner. The firm also successfully launched two funds and achieved eight new managed accounts.

“Looking ahead, there are a number of risks emerging in Europe, including political tensions, a continued weight of money chasing the sector and the consequential impact of a tapering of Quantitative Easing. But we believe the attraction of secure and stable income returns associated with strong supply and demand fundamentals remain strong. Urban logistics, offices in certain major cities, retail parks and other selective retail formats, socio-infrastructure assets and alternatives are expected to outperform,” Kiran Patel, chief investment officer, Savills Investment Management, said.