Uncertainties fuelled by events such as the UK exit from the European Union and US elections loomed large for Asian firms when thinking about their property, a survey finds.

Economic uncertainties stemming from fears about the European Union’s future and recent US elections were cited as the single-largest challenge for Asia-Pacific companies in thinking about their property strategy, real estate consultancy Knight Frank said.

In a survey of more than 200 companies, Knight Frank found that almost half of respondents (47.4 per cent) said economic uncertainties were their top concern, followed by competition (46.1 per cent) and cost inflation (32.1 per cent). Political uncertainty, meanwhile, was cited as a challenge by 13.3 per cent of those surveyed. The report is called Asia-Pacific Office Occupier Survey Results 2016/17.

“Unsurprisingly, economic uncertainty was highlighted as the most significant challenge to businesses in the region. External macroeconomic uncertainties emanating from Europe and the US, including the fallout from Brexit and the potential impact on trade from a new US administration, are likely to weigh on sentiment. Closer to home, the performance of the slowing Chinese economy, which is so vital to many economies in Asia-Pacific, will also be an important regional determinant of business performance in 2017,” said Nicholas Holt, head of research for Asia-Pacific.

“Competition was also highlighted as a major concern going forward. While traditional competition facing most industries is as strong as ever, changes in technology are also bringing in new competitors into some sectors as barriers-to-entry come down. Fintech is proving a major challenge to retail banking, while advances such as 3D printing are bringing in new competition to certain manufacturers,” he said.

Besides financial institutions, other sectors represented by the firms in the survey were consulting, consumer products, manufacturing and farming, pharmaceutical, biotechnology and healthcare, petroleum and energy, public sector and NGO, technology, and communications.

“Other concerns are also weighing on many occupiers going forward, although interestingly, political uncertainty – something that continues to plague the West – does not seem to have been a major concern for Asia-Pacific tenants. This can certainly be viewed as a positive for the business landscape in 2017,” he added.