New housing starts in Japan in April fell sharply by 26.6% year-on-year, marking the largest drop since 2009.

In April 2025, the number of new housing starts in Japan decreased by 26.6% year-on-year, far exceeding the market's expected decline of 18.3%, and a significant reversal from the previous month's increase of 39.1%. This is the second decline this year and the steepest drop since October 2009.