Kanagawa Prefecture's Investment Environment

日本語

Kanagawa Prefecture : A Snapshot

Kanagawa Prefecture is located south of Tokyo. Access to the area is excellent because of its proximity to Tokyo International Airport—commonly known as Haneda Airport—as well as the Tokaido Shinkansen Line and Tomei Expressway, which both run through Kanagawa Prefecture and connect Tokyo and Osaka.

Kanagawa is also considered part of the Tokyo metropolitan region, which accounts for a third of Japan’s population. Bolstered by industries that possess sophisticated technological capabilities as well as a large human resource pool, Kanagawa enjoys constant growth and offers much that will appeal to businesses.

Kanagawa Prefecture : Some Vital Statistics

Population: 

9.2 million (As of January 2023. Japan’s population: 125 million. No. 2 out of 47 prefectures)

Area:

2,416 sq. km (932.88 sq. mi.) (As of January 2019. No. 43 out of 47 prefectures (5th smallest prefecture))

Comparable area to Luxembourg (2,586 sq. km)

Size of Economy:

Prefectural GNP of ¥35.20 trillion (approx. $323.9 billion)

Comparable to Denmark ($347.6 billion) 

(Source:FY2019 Kanagawa Prefecture Citizen's Economic Accounts)

Number of Foreign-affiliated Firms:

 318 (No. 2 after Tokyo)

(Source:Toyo Keizai Inc. “Directory of Foreign-owned Companies in Japan 2022”)

 

Five Benefits of the Kanagawa Business Environment

1.Convenient Transportation Access

Kanagawa Prefecture is equipped with high speed transportation infrastructure such as Shinkansen (Bullet Trains) and expressways. In addition to excellent domestic transport access, Haneda Airport, which has greatly increased its number of international flights in recent years, is conveniently located only about 30 minutes by car or train from Yokohama.

2.Cost Performance

 Office rental costs in Kanagawa Prefecture are only around 50% of the cost of renting in Tokyo. As the cost is low even in comparison with other major Asian cities, businesses will be able to keep costs down when establishing an Asian headquarters in the Tokyo metro area.

3.Abundant Human Resources

 Kanagawa Prefecture has roughly 63,000 people working at academic and R&D; institutions, the highest number in Japan. It also has the second most R&D; labs and offices in the nation.

(Source:2014 Economic Census)

4.Corporate Clusters

Large multinational corporations such as Nissan Motors, Fuji Xerox, Sony, and Takeda Pharmaceutical have also established bases in Kanagawa Prefecture. Because a particularly large number of research labs are situated in Kanagawa Prefecture, companies are able to collaborate in cutting-edge technologies.

5.Comfortable Living Environment

Kanagawa Prefecture is home to 11 international schools. There are also 69 medical facilities in the prefecture which have instituted a system offering medical interpretation by a network of volunteers. This environment allows representatives from overseas and their families to feel at ease in their daily lives.

 

Please also see Why Kanagawa? (Select Kanagawa NEXT Brochure)