India has emerged as the third-largest destination for global cross-border capital targeting land and development sites, according to Colliers’ Global Capital Flows Report for H1 2024. The Asia-Pacific (APAC) region continues to play a significant role in global capital movement, with Singapore, Hong Kong, Japan, and China ranked among the top ten sources of cross-border capital.
In the first half of 2024, foreign investment accounted for 73 per cent of total inflows into India’s real estate sector. Institutional investors focused primarily on industrial and warehousing, along with office assets, which collectively represented nearly three-fourths of the total investments. Investments in industrial assets alone surged fivefold compared to the same period last year, underscoring the growing global confidence in India’s infrastructure and supply chain capabilities.
"Foreign investment in India's industrial and warehousing sector has seen significant traction recently," said Piyush Gupta, Managing Director, Capital Markets & Investment Services at Colliers India. "In H1 2024, 70 per cent of foreign inflows into India’s real estate sector were directed towards industrial and warehousing assets, driven by demand from third-party logistics (3PL) providers, e-commerce players, and the strengthening of manufacturing capabilities in key industrial corridors."
The report highlights that India attracted USD 3.5 billion in inflows during the first half of 2024, with 70 per cent of the investments directed towards ready assets. However, developmental assets remain a key area of opportunity, thanks to India’s rapid growth and ongoing infrastructure projects.
Vimal Nadar, Senior Director and Head of Research at Colliers India, emphasised, "Backed by robust domestic demand and healthy GDP growth, investment in Indian real estate will remain steady. Foreign inflows, which accounted for 73 per cent of total investments in H1 2024, will continue to dominate, with North America and EMEA leading the charge, and increasing interest from the wider APAC region."
The APAC region, representing a major hub for global economic activity, continues to offer diverse investment opportunities across sectors like industrial, residential, and specialised assets such as data centres and cold storage.
Colliers’ Chris Pilgrim, Managing Director of Global Capital Markets for the Asia Pacific, concluded, "With improving fundamentals and potential rate cuts on the horizon, we expect new investment opportunities to emerge, boosting positivity in real estate markets across the region."