In most countries, "cities" don't invest; private developers make those decisions. Skyscrapers are difficult and expensive to build, especially in seismically active areas like Japan. And they require reliable modern infrastructure; they'd be intolerable without reliable electric service and efficient water supply and sewerage.

There's a big jump in costs per square foot as one goes from what's possible with wood framing (or simple concrete construction by unskilled laborers) to steel or sophisticated concrete framing, so cities in developing countries often max out at three or four stories for nearly all buildings. Then above a certain height (usually somewhere between 20 and 40 stories) additional floors start to cost more than they can return in rent, because a large proportion of floor space is required for elevators and fire stairs. The size of floor plates is limited by people's unwillingness to live and work very far from a window (usually no more than 10 meters).

In many countries, cultural traditions (preferences for outdoor private gardens, expected patterns of childrens play, etc.) are at odds with highrise living. In addition, urban planners are often concerned with the harm highrises do to streetscapes. Many European cities discourage highrises for that reason.