Growth Slows in Land Prices around Chip Plants in Japan

Tokyo, Sept. 16 (Jiji Press)--Growth in the prices of residential and commercial land around semiconductor plants in Japan as of July 1 decelerated from a year before, data from the land ministry have shown.

Apparently behind the slower growth are factors such as soaring construction costs and oversupply of housing.

Still, the pace of growth in industrial land prices is accelerating as demand for semiconductors remains robust, according to the ministry data released Tuesday.

In the city of Chitose, Hokkaido, northernmost Japan, in which Japanese chipmaker Rapidus Corp. has a factory, growth in the price of a residential land plot near Chitose Station of Hokkaido Railway Co., or JR Hokkaido, slowed to 15.4 pct per square meter from the 23.2 pct a year earlier because soaring housing prices prompted some residents to move to neighboring municipalities, such as the city of Eniwa, where houses are more affordable.

The situation changed also for commercial land.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]