| Singapore now has the world's 43rd most expensive office rents, 20 notches higher than last year, according to the latest survey by consultants CB Richard Ellis.
However both CBRE and other consultants that Channel NewsAsia spoke to say Singapore's competitiveness is far from being eroded.
After an almost 10-year deflationary cycle, prime office rent in Singapore turned around two years ago.
And what a recovery it has been.
Last year alone, prime office rent spiked up 20 percent, with a further 8 percent climb in the first quarter of this year.
And this has caused Singapore to move up the rankings among the costliest global cities.
Donald Han, Managing Director, Cushman & Wakefield, said: "Across Western Europe, rents are pretty flat. In the US, the Americas, rents are also flat. So if you look at our positioning on a global map, we will probably be at the top three best performing, Singapore being best performing, fastest rising market in Asia. So by virtue, in terms of positioning on a global ranking, we would probably see ourselves positioning much higher right now compared to 12 months ago."
But CBRE says the competitiveness of prime office rents is not likely to be eroded, a view shared by other consultants.
Mr Han said: "It fairly manageable compared with the growth that we are experiencing, it's quite in line. We are looking at economic growth of close to 6 percent, this year we are expecting at the higher end of 5 to 6 percent. So we are looking at top end rents growing at almost12-15 percent. It's still fairly manageable. We are not like Hong Kong, where rents tend to overrun itself compared to the economic growth."
But rents are still 40 percent below the trough in 2004, and there appears to be room for more rental growth.
Consultants say they expect rents to rise 15-20 percent for the rest of the year from the current average rent of $5.60 per square foot per month.
And based on Singapore's current ranking among major cities, they feel that office rents could enjoy another two to three years of sustainable growth without losing competitiveness. - CNA/ch
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