(Save thedate: RealShareChicago comes to the Union League Club ofChicago October23.)

CHICAGO-There’s five clear reasons why the class A,400,000-square-foot and larger industrial market still registersless than 10% vacant, with the traditional coastal markets leadingthe strong numbers. However, even the distribution hubs such asChicago posted low vacancy and surprisingly strong absorption,according to reports by Jones Lang LaSalle.

The national large-box industrial market, particularly thedistribution centers, have increased in demand because of a lack ofsupply, an influx of new foreign capital but reductions in foreignsupply chains, the explosion of e-commerce and solid USinfrastructure, JLL EVP Tim O’Rourke tells GlobeSt.com. There’sbeen two years of solid consecutive quarters of positiveabsorption, but the economy and basic fundamentals have kept theabsorption down below pre-recession levels.