Japan's largest production of first-harvest sencha crude tea was not No. 1 for two consecutive years in Kagoshima, and Shizuoka took the top spot again this year. According to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Shizuoka produced 7,590 tons of sencha crude tea in the first harvest of 2024, accounting for 22.9% of the country's total production. Kagoshima produced 5,770 tons, or 17.4% of the total, and was in second place. The production volume in Shizuoka increased by 4.7% compared to the previous year, while that in Kagoshima decreased by 8.3%. The total production of sencha crude tea in Japan was 33,100 tons, down 1.8% from the previous year. Shizuoka has been the top producer of sencha crude tea for 21 years since 2002, but Kagoshima took the top spot in 2022 and 2023. The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries said, "The weather was favorable for tea cultivation in Shizuoka, with less rain and more sunshine, which contributed to the increase in production."

Following the introduction of a revised tax system, apartment prices in Seoul's affluent districts, such as Gangnam and Seocho, have continued to decline. According to the Korea Real Estate Association's 'Weekly Apartment Price Trend' report, apartment prices in Seoul's third week of August rose by 0.22% compared to the previous week.

This increase was comparable to the previous week's 0.21%. However, apartment prices in Seocho and Gangnam districts have fallen for two consecutive weeks. The revised tax system is expected to increase the burden of property taxes for owners in Seocho (-0.04% to -0.09%) and Gangnam (-0.02% to -0.05%). In contrast, areas such as Songpa (-0.12% to 0.10%) have seen a slowdown in rising prices.

Middle-income areas like Jung-gu (-0.45%), Jung-gu (-0.44%), Seodaemun (-0.44%), Jung-gu (-0.41%), and Gangbuk (-0.41%) have maintained steady upward trends. The Korea Real Estate Association reported that "locally downward transactions occurred within the trading atmosphere." According to data from real estate platform Asil, the number of Seoul apartment transactions registered on this day reached 62,516, a 3.5% increase compared to the previous day.

Compared to the previous week, the economy posted a 0.15% increase in the Seoul region (0.17% in Gangwon province). In the rental market, Seoul experienced a 0.01% decrease in price growth compared to the previous week (-0.19%). The decline in Seocho (-0.08%) continued after it switched from an upward trend in September last year to a decline, and Gangnam (-0.03%) kept its downward trend after switching to a downward trend in the previous week.

However, areas such as Jung-gu (0.37%), Gangbuk (0.37%), Dongbang (0.36%), Nowon (0.35%), Seodaemun (0.34%), and Seongdong (0.33%) continue to experience slight upward trends in both sale and rental prices. Gangwon province experienced the largest increase in price growth, with Hongcheon-dong (0.51%), Giheung-gu (0.48%), Hanam (0.40%), and Guimyeong (0.34%) leading the upward trend.