Japan Housing Starts Rose 18.6% Year on Year in June, Slower Than May but Above Expectations

Data from Japan's Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism released on Friday, 31 July 2026 showed that the number of new housing units started in Japan rose 18.6% year on year in June 2026. That marks a sharp slowdown from the 33.9% growth recorded the previous month, but it still came in well above the 12.8% economists had expected.

In the same release, the value of Japanese construction orders rose 2.3% year on year in June 2026, after a 6.7% decline the month before.

In absolute terms, Japanese housing starts totalled 57,877 units in May 2026, down from 62,569 units in April. The long-run average for the series since 1960 is about 96,914 units a month.