Newbury Street falls out of US shopping's top 10

(File photo: Lisa Poole for The Boston Globe)

By Chris Reidy, Globe Staff

At first glance, Newbury Street seems a glorious shrine to disposable income, an ideal venue for buying the latest fashions in elegant stores or sampling the latest uber chef delight while lunching al fresco. But as tony shopping districts go, Newbury Street may be losing some luster to the recession, according to a new report that surveys the world's glitziest retail streets.

The report is from the real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield, and Newbury Street ranked as the 11th most expensive retail street in the United States, down one notch from 10th on last year's list.

In a report titled "2009 Main Streets Across the World," Cushman & Wakefield said that Newbury Street asking rent is currently $125 per square foot, down 10.7 percent year over year.

Newbury Street is hardly the sole casualty to hard times. According to Cushman & Wakefield, stores experienced the biggest global fall in retail rents in the annual report's 24-year history. Most of the 10 most expensive streets in the world have seen their prime rents fall or remain static as the recession has caused retailers to rein in expansion, Cushman & Wakefield said. (Locally, a recent Globe story noted that some fashion retailers are taking up residence in Boston's North End.)

The report focuses on rents for stores, and a drop in rent doesn't necessarily diminish a street's shopping cachet. And in theory, lower rents could mean better bargains for consumers.

In any case, New York's Fifth Avenue endures as the world's most expensive retail address - it's been the world's most expensive street for the last eight years.

Avenue des Champs-Elysées in Paris is Europe's most expensive address, and Hong Kong's Causeway Bay topped the list for Asia Pacific, Cushman & Wakefield said.

Internationally, Dublin's Grafton Street took a hit last year while Kaufingerstrasse in Munich was the big gainer, rising to ninth place from 12th with a 7.1 percent increase in rents, the report said.