Robust leasing bolstered Oahu's first-quarter industrial real estate market to levels not seen since 2008, according to a market report from the commercial real estate firm Colliers Monroe Friedlander.

Several large national tenants like Servco Pacific and Walmart helped absorb 161,142 square feet of industrial space and reversed a downward trend. Colliers expects vacancy rates will hover near 5 percent by year's end.

Average asking rent rose to $1.01 per square foot per month from the year-ago 99 cents. The slight gain in rent was a sign that the market, which had declined 24.4 percent from its peak 2007 level, could be leveling off. Colliers projects that rents still could fall another 5 percent by year' end and that landlord concessions will continue to increase, particularly in less popular outlying market areas.

Colliers anticipates that the industrial sector will continue to face volatility and uncertainty until the end of 2010, said Mike Hamasu, director of Colliers' research and consulting division.