(Yicai) July 15 -- The vacancy rate of office buildings in Beijing has declined despite downward pressure on rent prices, with technology companies driving the Chinese capital city’s office building leasing market, according to recent reports.

The overall office vacancy rate in Beijing has remained relatively stable, but that for Grade A office buildings has decreased in the second quarter of the year from the previous quarter, mainly thanks to large leasing transactions in Zhongguancun High-Tech Zone and Lize Financial Business District, according to a report from Jones Lang LaSalle.

The vacancy rate of Grade A office buildings in Beijing had dropped to 18.4 percent on June 30 from 18.6 percent on March 31, according to the latest Beijing Grade A Office Market Report released by Knight Frank.

The main companies driving Beijing’s office building leasing market this year were those engaged in the technology, finance, and professional services sectors.

The ratio of tech firms to the total leasing area was 34 percent in the first half of the year, compared with 22 percent for finance companies and 16 percent for professional services providers, data from the Knight Frank report showed.

Zhongguancun’s office vacancy rate plunged to 12.8 percent in the second quarter from 16 percent in the first quarter, marking the area with the largest drop in the city, mainly thanks to the dense concentration of high-tech companies in the zone, according to Knight Frank. Despite that, office rent prices in Zhongguancun declined 1 percent to CNY258.20 (USD36) per square meter per month.

Office rent prices in Beijing continue to fall despite the slight rebound in office buildings’ vacancy rates, but at a slower pace.

In the second quarter, the average rent price for Grade A office buildings in the city was CNY233 (USD32) per sqm per month, down 1.6 percent from the first quarter and 7.4 percent from the fourth quarter of last year, according to the Knight Frank report.

Beijing Financial Street, which is known for having the highest office rental prices in the city, has also experienced a price drop. Knight Frank data showed that Beijing Financial Street’s average office rental price was CNY389.20 (USD54) per sqm per month in the second quarter, down 6.1 percent from the first quarter and 9.7 percent from the fourth quarter of last year.

Editor: Futura Costaglione