In Japan, the hardest hit sector was urban commerce and services, which declined 23 percent in 1928–1933, followed by agriculture which declined 12 percent. However, manufacturing experienced positive growth in nearly every year. The 1920s economically were sluggish in Japan, and the financial crisis began earlier there, as a major banking panic occurred in 1927. Recovery was stimulated by heavy government spending, especially for the Army and Navy. Relief programs were focused on the politically important rural areas. Urban relief projects had low priority in the 1930s, since Tokyo had been heavily subsidized for rebuilding after the great 1923 earthquake. Osaka used its own funds to expand new housing into suburban areas in the 1930s.