1. Hungary: Hoteliers eye rising tourism
The Hungarian hospitality industry is benefiting from relative low-pricing and a broader variety of visitors, though analysts said future growth beyond Budapest will depend on balancing affordability with higher costs.
Hungary’s hotel industry saw a positive shift in its 2025 performance, driven by the rising popularity of Budapest, relatively low costs and marketing efforts to attract non-European Union visitors. Yet beneath the headline gains, currency dynamics and uneven regional performance continue to weigh on the sector, leaving hotels short of a full post-pandemic recovery, according to sources.
2. UK: Retailer Claire’s enters second regional restructuring
Struggling United States-based fashion accessories retailer Claire’s has entered financial administration in the United Kingdom, similar to the American bankruptcy process, for the second time in six months. The move came after reported regional pressures from tax policy shifts. Landlords seek to take back some of the approximately 150 Claire’s stores in the United Kingdom and Ireland.
Insolvency practitioners from business consulting firm Kroll were appointed as administrators to Claire’s United Kingdom and Ireland operations, meaning they will run the company and try to find a solution to its financial woes, according to a Kroll statement. Claire’s first entered administration in the U.K. in August after its parent company, Claire’s Holdings, started United States Chapter 11 backruptcy protection proceedings. It subsequently announced plans to sell most of its North American business to private equity firm Ames Watson.
3. France: Brookfield to buy prominent Paris retail property
Canadian investment giant Brookfield Asset Management was the reported buyer as French retail group Galeries Lafayette said it finalized the sale of the iconic BHV building in Paris. Sources said the purchase price was about €300 million, as the deal ended a three-year saga regarding the property’s fate.
The building in the heart of Paris houses the historic department store BHV, whose business was acquired more than two years ago by investment group SGM. Brookfield and SGM plan to continue operating the BHV store, with added development planned there, according to a Galeries Lafayette statement.
4. Germany: Rising insurance costs weigh on real estate values
Rising insurance premiums tied to severe weather events have become the biggest factor affecting property operating costs and real estate values in Germany, according to a study by brokerage JLL and insurance services provider Munich RE.
Analysts said increasingly frequent weather events tied to climate change cause high damage, reduce property values and cause insurance costs to skyrocket across Europe. Frankfurt, Berlin, and Munich are most at risk in Germany.
5. Canada: Real estate pros look for stability as borrowing costs hold steady
Real estate professionals said they are hoping the Bank of Canada’s decision to hold its policy interest rate at 2.25% will keep borrowing costs steady as the economy adjusts to slower growth and ongoing trade uncertainty.
In a statement, the central bank said its stance reflects an economy where “uncertainty is heightened, and we are monitoring risks closely.” For real estate investors, stabilized interest costs come as Toronto new‑condo sales have fallen sharply from their peaks in 2021 and 2022, and Vancouver has seen a similar pullback. As unsold units in both cities climb, developers have slowed or paused projects amid high financing costs and cooling pre‑construction activity.
6. US: Amazon to close grocery stores in latest brick-and-mortar retreat
E-commerce giant Amazon is pulling the plug on all its Amazon-branded grocery stores, closing about 70 locations and saying it hasn't found the “right economic model” for large-scale expansion in yet another failed effort at brick-and-mortar retail.
The Seattle-based behemoth disclosed plans to shut down its Amazon Fresh supermarket chain and Amazon Go outposts. There are 57 Fresh stores and 15 Go convenience shops, and Amazon plans to convert an unspecified number of those locations to its Whole Foods Market brand. The company previously pulled the plug on physical store chains including Amazon 4-star, Amazon Pop Up and Amazon Books in the United States and United Kingdom.
This report was compiled from CoStar’s news publications in the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, France and Germany.