Mumbai, Delhi NCR, Bengaluru drive 70% of India's retail leasing: JLL

JLL reports that Mumbai, Delhi NCR, and Bengaluru together account for 70% of India's overall retail leasing activity, cementing the three metros as the dominant hubs for retail real estate expansion.

— FiledTue, 7 Jul, 2026, 19:46 IST·First seen Tue, 7 Jul, 2026, 19:45 IST·Source Hindustan Times · Business

What happened

JLL reports Mumbai, Delhi NCR, and Bengaluru together account for 70% of India's overall retail leasing activity, reaffirming these three metros as the dominant

Key facts

  • 70% of retail leasing activity

Why this matters

Target M&A and partnership opportunities with retail and real estate players anchored in the three dominant metros, while scouting early positions in under-penetrated Tier-2 markets for diversification.

What to watch

  • Prime mall vacancy rates dropping below 5% in the three metros
  • Rental growth exceeding 8-10% YoY in top catchments
  • New mall supply completions in Hyderabad, Pune, Chennai
  • Consumption/discretionary spend indicators and festive-season sales data
  • Quarterly JLL/CBRE leasing absorption splits by city tier
  • National retailers lock long-term anchor leases in Grade-A metro malls to secure prime space before rent escalation
  • Developers fast-track new mall pipelines in the three metros to capture demand
  • F&B, athleisure and quick-commerce dark-store operators expand aggressively in high-street micro-markets
  • Landlords in tier-2 cities offer rent incentives to attract overflow demand