Quartz reports:
In China, home to the world’s largest (and mostly empty) mall, the boom is leading to such a high vacancy rate that many malls have not only been waiving rent, but actually paying retailers like H&M and Zara to move in.
There are speculations that China’s mall boom has been funded by easy credit, lax central oversight, and corruption. Despite high vacancy rates and numerous “ghost malls,” China still has more new malls in development than any other country in the world, by a wide margin. This is the real estate bubble that may be the cause of China’s recent slowdown. Profit margins are thin, despite China’s growing middle class, though international brands are cashing in on the newly rich’s love of high-end goods. China is soon expected to overtake Japan and the United States as the world’s top luxury market.
