It is leading economic indicator for Japan. According to last month report, Japanese housing starts decline by 7.6% in March 2020. This is the lowest of previous nine months. The new constructions drop to -0.3%, rented -6.6% and built for sale -16.1%.
The data of Japanese housing starts released on monthly basis usually on last day of each month at 5:00 GMT by Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Japan. Reading higher than expected taken as positive for Japanese economy while reading lower as expected taken as negative sign for economic growth.