Sep 22 (Japan Times) - The average price of land in Japan as of July 1 has fallen 0.4% since a year earlier, for the second consecutive year of declines amid the prolonged COVID-19 pandemic, government data showed Tuesday.
The margin of decline narrowed from 0.6% last year, with demand for residential land slightly improving.
Reflecting a drop in demand for hotels and shops due to the pandemic, prices of commercial land decreased, according to the data released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism.
In the nation’s three largest metropolitan areas — Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya — the average land price edged up 0.1%, while that of the Osaka area only saw declines.
The survey covered average prices for all types of land nationwide, including commercial, residential and industrial, based on the value of 21,443 sites across the country.
A ministry official said land prices would bounce back from the fall only after COVID-19 subsides and people return to the streets. “We will monitor the influence” of the pandemic, the official said.
The average price of commercial land dropped 0.5% from a year earlier, a sharper decrease than 0.3% recorded last year, and 41 of the country’s 47 prefectures saw declines, compared with 36 prefectures in the previous year.
