Tokyo Area Continues to Grow; Osaka Shrinks

The Mainichi Daily News reported that the population of Kanagawa prefecture, which includes Yokohama and Kawasaki cities, has passed Osaka to become the 2nd highest in Japan.

The population of Kanagawa Prefecture is 8,823,227, some 2,142 people more than that of Osaka Prefecture, officials said.

While the gap is not that large, it is seen by many observers as a further indication that Japan's economic and population dynamics are dominated today by the greater Tokyo region -- and that the outlying regions continune to fall behind.