Pedestrians walk in Ginza district of Tokyo on June 17, 2023. (PHOTO / AFP)

TOKYO - Japan's ultra-wealthy population is forecast to shrink by 1.8 percent in the five years to 2027, local media reported.

In Japan, the number of ultra-high-net-worth individuals, those with a net worth of $30 million dollars or more, is estimated at 21,859 in 2027, down from 22,259 in 2022, national news agency Kyodo reported Sunday, citing a recent report by a British real estate consulting firm Knight Frank.

Japan's population is projected to drop from 125 million in 2022 to 122 million in 2027, representing a 2.3 percent decrease

According to the annual wealth report, however, Japan will remain home to the second-largest number of such rich individuals in Asia, and a Knight Frank official attributed Japan's shrinking population to one of the main factors for the expected decline.

Japan's population is projected to drop from 125 million in 2022 to 122 million in 2027, representing a 2.3 percent decrease, according to the National Institute of Population and Social Security Research.

Asia as a whole is estimated to see its ultra-wealthy population increase by 39.8 percent to about 210,000 in 2027 from 2022, said the report.

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According to the report, the global population of ultra-high-net-worth individuals, or UHNWIs, fell 3.8 percent in 2022 from a year before, with many of them seeing their wealth shrink amid rising inflation and interest rate hikes.