Britain's commercial property sector stands to benefit from the positive outlook in the manufacturing industry, according to Midlands property consultant D & P Holt.
The claim is based on the latest report published by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) which revealed that while manufacturing orders were flat in the three months to January, output was stable for the second consecutive quarter.
And with both orders and output expected to enjoy moderate increases in the coming three months, D & P Holt director David Holt believes that the commercial property sector will receive a boost as a result.
"Demand for commercial property in the manufacturing, automotive and supply chain markets definitely improved throughout 2012 and it is within growing industries like these that the market will continue to grow throughout 2013," he explained.
Mr Holt added that investors can take advantage of the improving conditions in the market by adapting to the needs of tenants and re-modelling their assets where necessary - both of which could enable them to realise the potential for growth in the commercial property sector throughout the year.
And in highlighting the improvements that certain areas of the industry witnessed towards the end of 2012, he also revealed that assets such as industrial and office space could become increasingly important during the course of 2013.
But given that these are short-term predictions based on moderate forecasts with little being said of the bigger picture, investors may still be inclined to look to the traditionally safer areas, namely with commercial property investment opportunities in London.
The capital is widely considered as one of the more stable markets in the world given its well-established reputation as a financial services centre, with various economic and business districts offering strong potential for growth.
Indeed, London recently ranked third in a survey carried out by Urban Land Institute (ULI) and PwC which rated European cities based on their commercial real estate investment prospects in the coming year.