The City of London office investment market is on track for a record-breaking first quarter, according to Savills, with £3.2bn worth of assets currently under offer.

The agency said the number of deals close to completion could see activity “significantly ahead” of the next strongest first quarter on record, which was Q1 2007 when £2.45bn was transacted. It added that there could be more activity this quarter than in the whole first half of 2021, when £2.386bn was transacted.

High-profile assets currently under offer include 5 Fleet Place for £120m, as revealed by Property Week in December last year, and New London House for £70m, as revealed by Property Week yesterday.

Other buildings set to trade include 5 Broadgate, 120 Moorgate and 90 High Holborn.

Stephen Down, head of central London investment, said: “The sheer volume of offices under offer in the City of London is a strong indicator the Covid-19 ‘fog’ that has challenged the market over the last two years is finally lifting for good. There is strong demand for London, and this is across the board, from the city’s very best office buildings to options for value-add.

“The market will be watching what the North American players who have been dominant in 2021 will do in the year ahead, as ever-more opportunistic vehicles come to the fore. As international travel becomes easier, we anticipate the return of some Middle and Far Eastern buyers in London that should challenge US investors’ current monopoly on the market and return the breadth of buyer nationality in the City to pre-pandemic levels.”

This year has already seen its fair share of activity with Google’s decision to buy its own HQ for £762.5m; Goldman Sachs’ acquisition of a 75% stake in EDGE’s forthcoming London Bridge office scheme; Ekistics Property Advisors’ purchase of the long leasehold of 19-20 St James’s Street from WELPUT for £118m; and Brunswick Property Partners’ completion of the purchase of office building The Eversholt in Euston for £110m, as revealed by Property Week.