Space under offer across the central London office market has surged to its highest level since 2007, hitting 4.4m sq ft in Q2, according to Cushman & Wakefield's latest Marketbeat Central London Offices report.

The agency revealed a 28% quarter-on-quarter rise in office take-up to 2.4m sq ft in Q2, broadly in line with the five-year average, while 77% of activity involved grade-A space.

The West End accounted for 1.11m sq ft of office lettings, while 989,000 sq ft was transacted in the City and 324,000 sq ft in east London.

Cushman & Wakefield said the strongest indicator of market confidence came from the amount of space under offer, which was up 51% on Q1.

The increase was driven by large occupiers targeting the wider City and Canary Wharf markets, with several major requirements progressing through lease negotiations.

“The record volume of space under offer is a clear sign of occupier confidence,” said James Campbell, international partner and head of London office leasing at Cushman & Wakefield.

“Businesses may be taking longer to make decisions, but they are still committing to London and increasingly beginning their searches earlier to secure the best grade-A space before supply tightens further. This is further evidenced by five off-plan pre-lets in 2026, either committed to or under offer.”

Tech occupiers were a driving force in the market, accounting for 25% of H1 take-up, with AI businesses responsible for around 60% of that space and a 15% share of total central London take-up.

However, Cushman & Wakefield said it anticipated that H2 take-up would be underpinned by financial, professional services and legal occupiers.

Investment volumes also improved during Q2, with £2.06bn of office assets traded, up from £1.94bn in Q1. This is below the H1 2025 and five-year H1 averages, but the firm said momentum was building. The £3.13bn of assets under offer also point to an increase in deal volumes.

Larger lot sizes continue to attract investor interest, with 12 deals exceeding £100m during H1.

Chris Bennett, head of London offices capital markets at Cushman & Wakefield, said: ”The first half of the year saw an increasing shift towards investments with scale, with larger lot sizes driving more than half of all activity.

“UK buyers led the way, but strong international capital from Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific, together with increasing activity from institutional capital seeking core returns, speaks to the conviction that is returning to this market.

“With £3.13bn of assets now under offer, an almost £1bn increase on Q1, we expect deal volumes to keep building through the second half of the year.”