Commercial property prices tracked by CoStar retreated from historic peaks in February, the first monthly drop since the same time last year. The decline comes after investors spent money in 2021 that had built up during the early months of the pandemic, driving up prices in the latter half of the year.

A LOOK AT THE 2022 TOP 50 GLOBAL RETAILERS

The second year of the global pandemic challenged global retail in 2021 as it did in 2020. And, just as in 2020, global retail emerged with far more revenue and profit as it managed changes in shopper needs and routines. Extreme lockdowns still occurred but were more of the exception in most countries even with the onset of the delta and omicron variants.

U.S. PENDING HOME SALES APPROACH TWO-YEAR LOW; CONSUMER SENTIMENT SLUMPS

Contracts to buy U.S. previously owned homes dropped to the lowest level in nearly two years in February, weighed down by a persistent shortage of properties, and activity could remain sluggish amid increasing mortgage rates and high house prices.

CSA’S 2022 BREAKOUT RETAILER AWARD WINNERS ARE…

Chain Store Age honored five retail and restaurant brands at its Breakout Retailers Awards presentation, held at CSA’s 58th annual SPECS Show, March 20-22, in Grapevine, Texas. The winning lineup for 2023 included Burlington Stores, CAMP, Dutch Bros and Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers.

CONSTRUCTION COSTS HIT RECORD HIGH: REPORT

Construction and engineering costs in March were the highest they have ever been, following 17 consecutive monthly increases, according to a new report from IHS Markit, now a part of S&P Global and Procurement Executive Group. The IHS Markit PEG Engineering and Construction Cost Index increased from 75.3 in February to 85.5 in March.