By: Alejandro Bartra - Head of Industry and Logistics, Colliers Argentina

2025 left consolidated a more rational, selective and professional industrial and logistics market. The dynamics have changed: it is no longer enough to find an available property; it is now important to find the right property. how efficiently it returns to the operation. And the numbers help to explain why: in the second half of the year, the vacancy was located in 6,88%, The net absorption jumped to 137.200 m², showing that there is movement, but with more demanding criteria.

The structural change The preference for quality assets (AAA) and more sophisticated contracts has become a permanent feature. Schemes with a focus on efficiency, flexibility and cost predictability are being consolidated. The market left behind the logic of absorption for scarcity and entered a stage of conscious evaluation: the occupier looks at the total cost (operation + risks + continuity) and the owner defends value with better designed standards and contracts.

Trends and drivers

If 2025 had to be summed up in a single idea, it would be this: the market has become more demanding and, therefore, more transparent. This demand is underpinned by three trends that today act as drivers.

On the one hand, the product polarisation. Well-located AAA assets sustain demand because they solve what the operation needs -height, beaches, docks, energy, security and design-. Class B, on the other hand, enters a stage of permanent negotiation: without upgrading, it loses competitiveness and ends up being forced to adjust price or redefine its proposal.

At the same time, a more technical and professionalised demand. The conversation is no longer just about rent: it is about layout, operational cost, energy efficiency, scalability and risk. The real estate decision is no longer a tactical one, but is now integrated into the logistics and financial strategy. In short: a warehouse is not a “ceiling”, it is performance.

And all of this leads to a third driver: a more cautious and focused development. With high construction and replacement costs, the space for speculation is shrinking and the logic of the build-to-suit (and semi-BTS), with pre-sales or contracts to support the project. It is built less “by intuition” and more “because the demand is already written”.

Demand: a market that specialises

Demand also became more segmented, and this is good news: when the market matures, it stops looking for “any solution” and starts looking for “the right solution”.

At the top, the AAA product maintains traction, especially in consolidated parks and nodes where efficiency is verifiable. Specific operational attributes are prioritised: sufficient and reliable power, safety, docks, beaches, headroom and traffic flexibility. In the Class B, Instead, the decision is more sensitive to price and location, and absorption is selective: what does not offer a minimum standard of operation ends up being traded more (or falling off the radar).

In the last mile, Demand remains high due to proximity to consumption, but there is growing tension with the urban agenda: regulations, coexistence of uses, traffic, costs and social licences. It is not just a question of geographical proximity, but of real viability. At the same time, the cross-dock continues to gain ground because of its direct impact on distribution efficiency. And in cold and specialities, demand is structurally growing, but with a clear barrier: high investment, expensive replacement and technical requirements that do not allow for improvisation.

Location: what really decides

Location, on the other hand, is defined by concrete attributes and not by “map” proximity. The key factors are real access and connectivity, reliable infrastructure, availability and cost of labour, operational security and future scalability within the same logistics node. And an increasingly decisive point in any assessment: the municipal tax burden, which has a direct impact on the total cost of operation.

The consolidated areas of GBA North and mature corridors continue to concentrate qualified demand, but significant growth is observed in GBA South and West, where competitive equations and specific opportunities appear.

High costs: less speculation, more contracting

What you see is not a slowing market, but a more selective market. With high replacement costs, there is less downward pressure on quality products and the gap with obsolete assets is amplified. In fact, the asking rent average stood at 7.41 USD/m². and the difference by category is clear: Class A 8.40 USD/m² in the face of Class B 6.25 USD/m². In other words, the market pays for standard and operational efficiency.

In this scenario, profitability is defended less on the basis of expectation and more on the basis of substance: contract, operational efficiency and occupier stability. The compression of yields cannot be the only story; the story is the quality of flow, predictability and risk.

Actionable opportunities for 2026

Looking to 2026, the opportunities are concrete.

For occupants, the differential lies in looking beyond the rent: optimise layout, By consolidating operations and negotiating efficient contracts on well-designed assets, you can reduce the total logistics cost, not just the real estate cost.

For owners and investors, The strategy is clear: selective upgrades (energy, docks, security, flexibility) sustain occupancy and value. In a professional market, the “surgical” upgrade is worth more than the overall promise.

For developers, The watchword is discipline: proven locations, scalable projects and BTS schemes, avoiding speculative developments in secondary areas with no assured demand.

Three quick wins are repeated in the market: low CAPEX operational improvements (lighting, energy, circulation), contractual flexibility without giving up nominal income and asset repositioning with a clear objective of efficiency and real use.

The main brakes remain the lack of medium and long-term financing, infrastructure bottlenecks (access and energy) and replacement costs that force selectivity. If macro stability is sustained and credit normalises, many investments currently under analysis can be unlocked. And if that happens, the market will accelerate where it always accelerates: in new, quality projects, located with operational logic and backed by smart contracts.

Quotable phrases / for highlights

• “Logistics no longer competes by surface area: it competes by performance”.”
• “Asset B that is not updated, discounted or redefined.”
• “With high costs, rent is defended by contract and operation, not by expectation.”