As NAIOP's I.CON Virtual 2020 conference kicked off this week, keynote speakers, panelists and a COVID commercial real estate tracking survey all pointed to the strength and momentum of the industrial real estate sector.

In the third NAIOP survey tracking the commercial real estate industry's response to the COVID crisis, the industrial real estate sector showed significant gains in new redevelopment/redevelopment, building acquisitions and deal activity.

Industrial real estate remains the strongest sector (compared to office, multifamily and retail) for reported activity, with the share of respondents observing new industrial development more than doubling since April (from 18.5% to 43.2%) and 70.7% of respondents witnessing industrial building acquisitions.