JTC Industrial Statistics Q3 2025

Based on advance estimates from the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), the manufacturing sector did not record any annual growth in Q3 2025. However, on a quarterly basis, the manufacturing sector grew 6.1% q-o-q, reversing the previous decreases of 0.7% and 5.1% in Q2 2025 and Q1 2025 respectively. At the same time, indicators in the industrial real estate sector continues to show stability and resilience.

In Q3 2025, the all-industrial price index increased 0.6% q-o-q. The quarter was marked by several notable industrial transactions, including the sale of a data centre at 51 Serangoon North Avenue 4 for S$354.0 million, as well as the acquisition of three logistics and two industrial properties by an EZA Hill-led consortium for S$329.0 million from CapitaLand Ascendas REIT. Nevertheless, overall sales volume fell 9.2% q-o-q to 424 transactions and total sales value declined 34.1% to S$1.5 billion in Q3 2025 (based on transactions downloaded as at 15 October 2025). Despite this, with interest rates easing, a greater range of investible Singapore industrial properties are increasingly moving into positive carry territory, drawing institutional investors from the sidelines into more active market and product discovery. Local small- and medium-enterprises (SMEs) are also selectively exploring suitable premises to purchase for business continuity amid the unpredictable economic conditions.

The all-industrial rental index expanded 0.5% q-o-q, even as the overall occupancy rate remained relatively steady, improving slightly by 0.3 percentage points to 89.1% from the 88.8% in Q2 2025. Although industrial leasing activity slowed in Q3 2025, declining 5.7% q-o-q and 4.1% y-o-y to 3,168 rental transactions, island-wide unit rents remained largely unchanged with some rental growth observed in the 25th percentile and the median bands in September 2025.

Due to the overall economic volatility, conditions could suddenly take a turn for the worst. Nevertheless, transport engineering and specifically aerospace activities continued to expand in Singapore. This has been and will continue to be underpinned by improving accessibility of air travel to middle class populations in more Asian cities. The Asia-Pacific aviation market is projected to grow at a faster pace than the global average, with the fleet size in the region envisaged to surpass 6,000 aircraft in the next 15 years. This sustained growth in passenger traffic and fleet demand is expected to drive greater need for maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) services. With Singapore poised to capture this expansion, ST Engineering opened a new 10,000 square metre aircraft engine MRO facility within its aerospace compound in Paya Lebar in September. The facility will progressively double the company’s engine maintenance capacity by 2027, focusing mainly on narrow-body aircraft.

The phased development and expansion of Tuas Port as a world-class port of the future will generate steady increment in shipping and logistics activities into the 2040s. PSA Singapore and Chinese shipping line Cosco signed a memorandum of understanding in September to collaborate on warehousing and logistics operations at a new facility within Tuas Port. Scheduled to commence operations in 2027, the new facility will integrate a wide range of services that include storage, distribution, cold chain management, and the handling of hazardous goods, supporting the rising flow of high-value goods across Southeast Asia, China, and the broader Asia-Pacific region. On the domestic front, supermarket operator Sheng Siong is relocating its headquarters, warehouse, and distribution centre from Mandai Link to Sungei Kadut as part of its expansion strategy. The new facility, spanning approximately 61,300 square metre, will feature multiple temperature-controlled storage zones and integrated food-processing capabilities.

Industrial real estate indicators were stable in Q3 2025 and is expected to remain so for the remainder of the year and into early 2026. However, business parks, particularly older stock in the East and West regions have generally witnessed occupancy levels at 73.0% and 63.1% respectively, compared with their Central region counterpart at 85.4%. This suggest that some of these properties could be due for a refresh and repositioning for occupiers in the post-pandemic period. The recent opening of RD American School in Changi Business Park brings a new type of tenant to the area. The campus features a flexible layout where open, reconfigurable areas foster activity and social interaction, rather than traditional classrooms.

For the rest of 2025, investor appetite for industrial properties is expected to remain healthy as interest rates fall and the financial viability of prime logistics properties, data centres, and specialised manufacturing facilities attract more interest on the back of positive carry. Investors are also expected to search for quality assets with leases of decent lengths, which offer stable rental income while providing a degree of security amid ongoing economic uncertainties. Such assets will come with premiums attached and factory values remain on track to grow closer to the higher end of the 3% and 5% projection range for the full year, with the all-industrial price index having risen 3.6% in the nine months of 2025.