India’s industrial and warehousing sector recorded strong leasing activity during the first nine months of 2026, with Grade A space absorption across the country’s eight leading markets reaching 33.3 million sq ft, an increase of 26% year-on-year, according to Colliers India. Delhi NCR and Chennai remained the largest demand centres, together accounting for nearly half of the total leasing activity during January–September 2026.
Pune and Bengaluru emerged as key growth markets, registering annual increases of approximately 70% and 61%, respectively. The two cities together accounted for nearly 8 million sq ft of leasing during the period. Seven of the eight major markets recorded higher absorption than in the corresponding period of 2025, demonstrating the sector’s broad-based resilience.
Leasing momentum strengthened further in the third quarter, with Grade A absorption reaching 11.4 million sq ft, up 63% from 7 million sq ft in Q3 2025. Delhi NCR led quarterly demand at 3.4 million sq ft, followed by Chennai at 2.3 million sq ft and Bengaluru at 2 million sq ft. Pune also recorded a sharp increase, with quarterly absorption rising to 0.9 million sq ft from 0.2 million sq ft a year earlier.
Vijay Ganesh, Managing Director, Industrial and Logistics Services, Colliers India, said, “India’s industrial and warehousing sector witnessed significant demand acceleration during Q3 2026, with leasing volumes surging by 63% YoY to 11.4 million sq ft of Grade A space. Demand continued to be anchored by Delhi NCR and Chennai, which together accounted for half of the quarter’s absorption, while Bengaluru and Pune emerged as high-growth markets, recording 2-4X times increase in leasing volumes on a yearly basis. The strong performance across key markets positions the sector to achieve 40-45 million sq ft of leasing in 2026.”
Third-party logistics (3PL) companies remained the largest occupier group, leasing more than 11 million sq ft and contributing nearly one-third of overall demand during January–September. Engineering companies followed with a 20% share, accounting for 6.6 million sq ft. Automobile companies recorded the strongest annual growth among occupier segments, with Grade A space uptake increasing 70%. E-commerce, electronics and engineering each registered leasing growth of close to 30%.
Large transactions exceeding 200,000 sq ft represented approximately 37% of total leasing across the eight markets. E-commerce and 3PL occupiers accounted for around 58% of these deals, with Delhi NCR leading large-sized transactions, followed by Chennai. Farukh Nagar and NH 48 in Delhi NCR, along with Bhiwandi in Mumbai, were prominent industrial and warehousing clusters, together accounting for nearly one-third of year-to-date leasing.
Vimal Nadar, National Director and Head of Research, Colliers India, said the market was benefiting from demand across logistics and manufacturing occupiers. He noted that the growing contribution of engineering and e-commerce businesses was diversifying the occupier base and supporting long-term prospects amid manufacturing expansion and supply-chain investments.
New Grade A supply reached 34.5 million sq ft during the first nine months, up 19% year-on-year. Delhi NCR, Chennai and Mumbai contributed 55% of additions. Ahmedabad and Pune recorded more than a two-fold increase in completions. Vacancy edged up to 16% at the end of Q3 as supply growth exceeded cumulative absorption, while average rents remained broadly stable, with select high-demand micro-markets recording increases.
Colliers India (NASDAQ: CIGI; TSX: CIGI) is a global diversified professional services and investment management company operating across Commercial Real Estate, Engineering and Investment Management. With more than 30 years of growth, the company reports annual revenues of $6 billion, 28,000 professionals and $110 billion in assets under management. Its partnership model supports entrepreneurial leadership, employee ownership and long-term value creation for clients, investors and employees worldwide.
