CBRE says recent declines in GDP were among the worst historically for many countries, with the major export-dependent nations of Asia seeing especially dramatic drops. On a year-over-year basis, Japanese Taiwanese and Chinese exports were down 45.6%, 35.7% and 17.1%, respectively, in Q1. The downturn has seen Asian governments take steps to reduce their reliance on exports to the West and strengthen support for domestic consumption.

According to the report, industrial production globally was growing about 5% per year in the early part of this decade, with much higher growth rates in Asia. But industrial production plunged in 2009, after a nearly flat performance in '08. However, CBRE predicts a very modest rise for industrial production next year, reflecting the expectation for a long recession and a middling recovery.

In regard to market performance, the report says average logistic rents declined in the major cities of mainland China--Beijing by 5.7%, Shanghai by 1.5% and Shenzhen by 5.1%, quarter over quarter--as well as in Hong Kong, Tokyo, Taipei and Singapore. As a result, capital values and land prices of industrial properties contracted throughout the region, though at varying rates. In the Pacific region, industrial rents were at best stable, but many markets saw them fall, with Brisbane taking the biggest tumble at 4.8%. Still, the overall rent decline was a modest 1.3% from a year ago.