The country's economic downturn and global economic uncertainty are expected to continue to put a downward pressure on the grade A office market in Guangzhou in the short term, forecast Savills, an international real estate adviser.

Both overseas and domestic companies remain cost conscious about office space rents and expansion plans. As a result, city-wide rents are expected to continue to fall, with the vacancy rate expected to rise this year, according to a report released by Savills on Wednesday.

Five new projects are expected to enter the city's office market this year, with annual supply reaching 464,000 sq m.

The retail property market in Guangzhou is expected to continue to make adjustments this year, suppressing the rent increase, with shopping malls facing the impact of growing e-commerce and slowing retail sales growth.

Several new high-quality projects are expected to enter the Guangzhou retail property market this year, including Park Central Plaza in Tianhe district and CapitaMall Sky+ in Baiyu district.

A number of overseas brands are expected to launch their new stores in these projects, helping to upgrade the overall retail property market.