Amsterdam’s Kalverstraat has dropped one place in Cushman & Wakefield’s ranking of the world’s most expensive shopping streets, published by the property consultancy every year since 1988.

The highest rents in the Kalverstraat are now €2,850 per square metre per year, down 1.7% on 2018, C&W said. The Kalverstraat has now dropped from 16th to 17th place in the top 20 list.

The global ranking is topped by Causeway Bay in Hong Kong.

‘Despite the buoyant economy, rising wages and improved consumer spending, the [Dutch] retail sector has experienced a more lacklustre performance and a number of retailers went into administration in the first half of 2019,’ the report said.

‘New entrants to the market are focusing on the top 5 to 10 retail locations in the country, rather than pursuing a strategy of nationwide coverage. This is reflected in the difference in availability, with smaller towns seeing a higher proportion of empty shops.’