Tourism helps Japan's land prices climb for fourth year

Popular tourist destinations helped lift Japan's official land prices by 1.2% as tracked on Jan. 1 for a fourth straight annual increase. Commercial real estate prices nationwide gained 2.8%, beating the 1.9% increase the prior year, land ministry data released on Tuesday shows. The three major metropolitan areas of Tokyo, Nagoya and Osaka jumped 5.1%, their greatest growth since the 2008 financial crisis. The value of all real estate nationwide returned to 40% of its peak before the country's property bubble burst in 1991. Land prices in areas other than major metropolises climbed for a second straight year, as residential real estate there increased for the first time in 27 years. Real estate investment and individual home purchases have been underpinned by low interest rates. In addition to prefectural capitals, growth was led by tourist areas as visitors to Japan topped 30 million for the first time in 2018. Tourist destinations like Hokkaido and Okinawa have become regulars on the list of fastest-growing real estate markets.