After a sharp fall in rentals in the core Central district, the worst for Hong Kong’s office leasing market is over, property consultants say.

They expect demand to pick up gradually amid growing expectations that the global economy will stabilise this year.

The office market was grim during the first half of last year, after the decline in the global economy in late 2011 forced many companies to put a stop to their expansion plans, property consultancy DTZ said.