With renewing confidence around the globe, investor capital flowed more freely into Asia Pacific property transactions during January 2010.

Investors in China led the pack with more than US$18.7 billion in commercial real estate deals in January 2010, up 515% from the roughly $3 billion posted in January 2009. Shanghai and Beijing saw the largest volume this past January, at approximately $3.1 billion and $2.3 billion, respectively.

Recovery in other markets from just a year ago is marked as well. Singapore recorded the most dramatic improvement year-over-year, with real estate deals totaling nearly $210 million in January, up 1,043% year-over-year. Hong Kong’s transaction market made gains as well, recording $802 million in property deal volume in January compared with about $248 million in January 2009, an increase of 224%.

Transaction volume improved in Japan and Australia as well, though not as vigorously. Japan’s figures reached almost $1.9 billion in January, up 34% from the nearly $1.4 billion total during the same period in 2009. Australia’s year-over-year gains were modest, with transaction volume up just 4% in January to roughly $535 million.

Anomalies in this upward trend in deal volume, both on the positive and negative side, occurred in India and South Korea. India, which did not record any significant property deals in January 2009, recorded transaction volume of nearly $543 million in January 2010. South Korea, however, was the only country to record lower deal volume from January 2009, down 55% year-over-year to slightly more than $184 million in January 2010.