Confirmation of the recovery taking place in the commercial property market mainly in central Dublin has come from the long-running Irish Property Index published by agents Jones Lang LaSalle.

The study shows that overall returns were on the positive side for the ninth consecutive quarter up to the end of December and were up 16.5 per cent for 2013 as a whole.

The 7.6 per cent increase in the fourth quarter was the largest since the final three months of 2005 when the property bubble was well under way.

Capital values increased for the third consecutive quarter – rising by 5.2 per cent. The greatest increase was in the office sector (6.2 per cent) followed by retail (5.3 per cent)and industrial (0.2 per cent).

This was the second successive quarter that showed increases in capital values across all sectors. It was also the first quarter in which overall capital values increased year on year since the final three months of 2008.

Hannah Dwyer, head of research at Jones Lang LaSalle, said the index results reinforced signs of continued recovery and stability across property markets. Capital values had increased across all sectors by 6.2 per cent in the last 12 months while rental values were estimated to have risen by 3.3 per cent.

She said recovery was being led by the office sector with capital values up by 10.7 per cent in the last 12 months and rental value increases of the order of 15.3 per cent over the same period.

A strong surge of investment and letting activity in the final quarter of 2013 provided market evidence for valuation and in some cases supported an increase in value.