Japan FY 2024 household spending down for 2nd year amid rising prices

Tokyo [Japan], May 12 (ANI/WAM): Japan's household spending in fiscal 2024 dropped a real 0.1 percent from a year earlier, falling for the second consecutive year, as consumers reduced food expenditure amid rising prices, government data showed recently.
Households of two or more people spent an average of 304,178 yen ($2,100) per month in the fiscal year ended March, according to the data, a key indicator of private consumption that accounts for more than half of Japan's gross domestic product.
The drop came as real wages in March fell 2.1 percent from a year earlier for the third consecutive monthly decline, separate data showed, with income growth falling behind price hikes as a weak yen pushes up import costs and companies pass labor and other expenses on to consumers. (ANI/WAM)