TOKYO, May 9, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Japan's fair trade watchdog has warned 15 luxury hotels in Tokyo that their sharing of information on occupancy rates and prices could violate anti-monopoly laws.

Hotel prices around the country have soared in recent months as record numbers of foreign tourists have flocked to Japan amid labour shortages and stubborn inflation.

Major hotel operators in the capital, including the Imperial Hotel and the New Otani, have held monthly meetings, the Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) said in a statement Thursday.

"They exchanged information on monthly room occupancy rates, average room prices, revenue per room, future bookings and policies for setting future room prices," the statement said.

The JFTC said it had "warned the 15 companies not to engage in similar acts" which "could fall under... unreasonable restraint of trade" prohibited by law.

Cartels and bid-rigging are among the acts that fall under unreasonable restraint of trade, according to the JFTC.

According to Tokyo Shoko Research, the average price per room for 12 non-luxury hotel brands in Japan in October-December 2024 rose to 16,289 yen ($110), up 17.8 percent year-on-year.

That average price has nearly doubled from 8,171 yen in 2021 during the pandemic.