Boston, MA 09/23/2014 (wallstreetpr) – Fortress Investment Group LLC (NYSE:FIG), the U.S. based asset manager is all going east as it steps up investment in Japanese hotels ahead of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The company is seeing ample monetizing opportunities locked in Japan’s tourism as the government there has been aggressively looking to boost tourism.
Tourism On A Rise
Reuters cited the Fortress Investment Group LLC (NYSE:FIG)’s managing director for Japan, Akio Yamashita stating that the company anticipated far more influx of visitors and tourists in Japan in the coming years, which could even exceed the stay places available for them in Japan. Thus, there is an immense opportunity for hotels in the region to generate profit during this period. He added, “while there are signs that demand for accommodation is set to increase, supply of the hotel is even falling in Japan,” which could make the income of hotels attractive. Yamashita did not give the specific details of the company’s investment corpus and tenure though. As of June 20, the company has over $63.8 billion assets under management.
Demand Exceed Supply
The Fortress Investment Group LLC (NYSE:FIG)’s increased interest in Japan finds its connection in the increasing number of tourists in the country year over year. During last year alone, Japan recorded 10.36 million tourists, as per the published data by Japan National Tourism Organization. The government is also taking steps to encourage tourism in the country as it targets to welcome 20 million tourists by the year 2020.Yamashita said that the construction of hotels in Japan has been slow due to high construction costs and thus, creating a disparity in demand and supply of hotel rooms.
Among other property investments, Fortress Investment Group LLC (NYSE:FIG) has ownership of Mystays Hotel Management Company, which operated in Japan through 47 business hotels. Recently, the company has revamped an office into Mystays hotel near Haneda airport and has acquired an under construction hotel in Kanazawa, which will be opened in November under the name of Mystays hotel.
