According to Cushman and Wakefield (C&W), London commercial property sales more than doubled to £1.43bn in Q2 2009 from the previous quarter, driven by more West End sales and an influx of overseas investors.

The property broker found that commercial property sales in the West End, City and Docklands increased by +110% in the second quarter, from £679m in the January-March leg. This compared with £2.1bn in Q2 2008.

In the West End, £733m of sales were recorded in the Q1 2009, up +250% from the first quarter, but down from the £928m booked in the year-earlier period. The average lot size was £23.6m, up from £14.7m in Q1 2009. Overseas private buyers accounted for 38% of purchases, with overseas funds behind a further 22%.