SINGAPORE (EDGEPROP) - The net absorption of data centres doubled in 2020, which is driven by a pandemic-led surge in demand for video conferencing, online schooling, entertainment, social networking and platforms to support remote working, according to CBRE’s new Asia Pacific Data Trends 2H2020 report.

Global internet traffic also surged 47% y-o-y in 2020, eclipsing initial forecasts of 28%. Demand was led by gaming, over-the-top media services, online content and streaming providers. Global technology services, which cater to a growing demand for remote working arrangements, are also displaying a strong appetite for co-location requirements and cloud storage.

In particular, Singapore and Sydney registered the strongest demand, primarily coming from hyperscale cloud providers, which contributed to around two-thirds of annual absorption. Additionally, emerging markets like mainland China, India and Indonesia are gaining momentum.

Read more: Singapore ranked sixth globally for data-centre market competitiveness

Overall vacancy of co-location data centres in Tier 1 markets continued to trend downwards in 2020, falling to 13.9% as of the end of 4Q2020. Availability is tightest in Singapore, where vacancy currently stands below 5% due to the impact of the moratorium on building new data centres which was introduced in 2019.