FX.co ★ Japan Housing Starts Fall More than Expected

In April 2025, Japan experienced a significant decline in housing starts, dropping by 26.6% compared to the same month the previous year. This figure fell short of market expectations, which had predicted an 18.3% decrease, a stark contrast to the 39.1% surge observed in March. This decline represents the second contraction of the year and marks the sharpest decrease since October 2009. The downturn was evident across most segments, with reductions in newly owned dwellings (-23.7% from March’s 37.4% surge), rented accommodations (-27.9% from a previous 50.6% increase), built-for-sale housing (-29.7% from an earlier 22.8% rise), prefabricated structures (-20.5% following a 9.9% growth), and two-by-four constructions (-46.6% worsening from -45.9%). Additionally, the pace of construction starts for issued permits slowed significantly to 27.3%, following a previous increase of 99.6%.