Public land prices falling

March 24, 2021 (Wednesday) Clear

・About 60% of 30 major universities in the Tokyo metropolitan area and other regions will shift to primarily in-person classes from April onward.

The shift from remote learning is gradually progressing.

There is a growing movement to construct university education that can be learned without restrictions on time or place.

・Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism on the 23rd announced that as of January 1, 2021, the publicly announced land prices across all uses (commercial, industrial, and residential nationwide) fell by 0.5% year-on-year, turning downward for the first time in six years.

The impact of the COVID-19 infection spread is large, and major urban areas are all seeing declines.

Fewer people going out and a sharp drop in inbound visitors have suppressed the performance of restaurants and retailers, pushing down land prices.

The Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism stated that “land prices are broadly weak.”

・Toyota <7203> [Closing price 8,304 yen] Will consider local production of the core system for fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) in China as early as 2022.

China, the world's largest automotive market, aims to have 1 million FCVs in use by 2035.

Toyota has been leading in FCV development and has kept core system production domestic.

Under policy incentives, the Chinese government is demanding localization, and the company is stepping into its first overseas production.

・LINE <4689> [Closing price 565.9 yen] On the 23rd, following a problem where personal information could be viewed by a subsidiary in China,

the company announced that it will not develop services or manage data involving Japanese users in China in the future.

LINE says outsourcing overseas is “not illegal,” but due to security risks such as information leaks, it will block access from China.

　

・The Biden administration in the United States is intensifying its stance against large IT (information technology) companies.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is considering whether to sue these companies for antitrust violations,

and nominates Lina Khan, a rising legal scholar known for criticizing Amazon.com, to the FTC.

・The COVID-19 situation shows no clear improvement, and restrictions on restaurant hours are expected to continue nationwide from April onward.

Tokyo, Kanagawa, Chiba, and Saitama prefectures are coordinating to extend the shortened operating hours through April 21.

・The confrontations between the United States, Europe, and China over the human rights issues of the Uighur people in China may spill into trade.

With the EU moving toward possible sanctions against China after roughly 30 years, there is growing uncertainty about approving the investment agreement reached with China.

Japanese companies operating globally are beginning to face these developments.

・Bank of Japan <8301> [Closing price 42,000 yen] On the 23rd, as part of its monetary easing, announced that it would consolidate its ETF purchases into TOPIX-type from April 1,

and stop purchases of the Nikkei 225-type that had been included up to now.

This marks the end of that approach.

・Domestic investment funds are reforming their management systems.

Funds belonging to large financial groups are pursuing greater independence in capital matters,

and domestic industry associations are moving to create benchmarks indicating overall fund performance.

・Japan Post Holdings <6178> [Closing price 1,069 yen] decided to resume individual sales of insurance products in April.

Kanpo Life Insurance <7181> [Closing price 2,392 yen] had reduced aggressive sales after improper contracts.

A full-scale resumption will be after 1 year and 9 months. In 2021, no sales targets will be set for the entire year.

・Tokio Marine Holdings <8766> [Closing price 5,360 yen] on the 23rd issued a statement that the impact on future earnings would be limited regarding taking on the insurance of the British financial firm Greenhill Capital, which went bankrupt.

They stated that there will be no impact on 2020 full-year results.

・Australia’s eastern region continues to experience record rainfall, with flooding spreading its damages.

Railways transporting coal from mines to export ports are being halted in some areas.

If rainfall continues, resource exports could be affected.

・China is strengthening its vigilance over local financial risks.

The grace period for principal and interest repayments on loans granted to small and medium-sized enterprises in response to COVID-19 ends in March, potentially revealing hidden non-performing loans at banks.

The health of regional banks remains a challenge.

・German Chancellor Angela Merkel on the early hours of the 23rd (Japan time morning) announced tougher lockdown measures during the Easter period from April 1 to 5 to curb the third wave of COVID-19 infections.

She indicated that stricter lockdowns would be implemented during the Easter holiday.

・The Chinese Communist Party revealed that it does not plan to hold a military parade in July to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the party's founding.

In a situation where the European Union, the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada are taking sanctions against China, it is possible that it is considered unwise to unnecessarily fuel anti-China sentiment.

・Worldwide COVID-19 infection numbers (deaths) as of 4:00 PM on 3/23, compiled by Johns Hopkins University: Global total 1,236,900,000 cases (7,859 deaths)

United States 29,869,514 (59,0) Brazil 12,047,526 (1,383) India 11,686,796 (199) Russia 4,416,226 (355) France 4,358,910 (657) United Kingdom 4,315,602 (18)

Italy 3,390,181 (386) Spain 3,228,803 (633) Turkey 3,035,338 (117) Germany 2,678,262 (253) Colombia 2,342,278 (120) Argentina 2,252,172 (126)