Japanese land values climb 1.5% for fifth consecutive year

Data released on Tuesday indicate that Japanese land prices rose 1.5% in the year to July 1, extending a five-year streak of appreciation and representing the fastest growth since the post-bubble era of the early 1990s. The increase mirrors last year's rise, which was the largest since a 3.1% gain in 1991. Across the major metropolitan regions of Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya, average land values climbed 4.4% compared with the previous year, a slight uptick from the prior period.

Tourist hotspots continued to benefit, with Hakuba in Nagano Prefecture seeing commercial land prices jump 35.6% due to heightened visitor demand. The Bank of Japan, which has noted little sign of overheating, is likely to factor these figures into its assessment of when to taper stimulus and raise still-low interest rates. Overall, the figures suggest a gradual economic recovery is sustaining the land market.