TOKYO (XINHUA) – Japan’s household spending in September dropped a real 1.1 per cent from a year earlier, down for the second straight month, government data showed yesterday.
In inflation-adjusted real terms in September, the household of two or more people spent an average of JPY287,963 (about USD1,880), according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
Outlays on cars plunged 40.1 per cent from a year earlier, slashing 1.47 percentage points from the overall data as a safety-certification scandal continued to drag on the sector.
Spending on housing, transportation and communications and healthcare also retreated, the data showed.
Meanwhile, expenditures on utility bills climbed 8.5 per cent, up for the first time in 12 months, driven by surging demand for air conditioning amid scorching heat, while outlays on clothing also increased 17.5 per cent, lifted by purchases of summer clothes.
Outlays on food, which account for around 30 per cent of spending, remained unchanged, as more people dined out, while consumers looked for savings by buying chicken, a ministry official said.
Household spending is a key gauge of private consumption in the country, which accounts for more than half of Japan’s gross domestic product (GDP).
