Japan February Retail Sales Dip on Covid Rules; Auto Sales Remain Weak on Chip Shortages 
–METI Repeats Retail Sales Are Flat After Downgrading Its View Last Month –Department Store Sales Mark 1st Y/Y Drop in 5 Months on Bad Weather, Omicron –Fuel Sales Up on Rising Energy Prices; Demand for Medicine, Cosmetic Solid By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japanese retail sales posted the third straight monthly dip and the first […]
Japan January Retail Sales Up on Year But Dip on Month As Covid Cases Spike 
–METI Reverses View: Retail Sales Are Flat Vs. Showing Signs of Pickup –Y/Y Rise Led by Higher Fuel Prices, Less Strict Covid Rules Vs. January 2021 By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japanese retail sales posted the fourth straight year-on-year rise in January, led by higher fuel prices and solid department store sales, as resumed restrictions […]
Japan Dec Household Spending Dips Again; Q4 Rise Points To Solid GDP Growth
— Oct-Dec Household Spending +4.6% Q/Q; Q4 GDP Seen Up 1.4% Q/Q— Shrinking Demand for TVs, Food for Cooking Leads To Y/Y Drop in December— Spending on Dining Out, Traveling Up Y/Y But Ministry Keeps Close Watch By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japan’s household spending suffered a slight drop from a year earlier in December […]
Japan METI Unintentionally Posts +1.4% M/M Dec Retail Sales Hours Early
— METI Official: Data Embargoed on New Internal Computer System— METI Official: May Be Due To Human Error But Cannot Confirm Yet By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japanese retail sales rose modestly, posting the third straight year-on-year rise in December, when consumers appeared to have braved the early stage of the Omicron storm during the […]
Japan Government Keeps Economic Pickup View After December Upgrade
— Consumers Brave Omicron Scare in Year-End, New Year Leisure Season — Production Improving on Easing Supply Constraints By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japan’s government Tuesday maintained its economic overview after upgrading it last month for the first time in 17 months, saying consumer spending is picking up — despite rising Covid cases — and […]
Japan November Household Spending Slumps As Stay-at-Home Demand Eases
— Decline in Covid Cases Leads People To Resume Commuting, Traveling— But Shift to More Activity Fails to Offset Lower Spending on Utilities By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japan’s household expenditures unexpectedly slipped in November from both the previous year and month as a decline in Covid cases prompted more people to travel and resume […]
Japan Nov Retail Sales Up on Fuel Price Rise, Eased Covid Restrictions 
— METI Revises Up View: Retail Sales Showing ‘Signs of Pickup’ Vs. ‘Flat’ — Vehicles Sales Drop Smaller As Supply Chain Constraints Alleviated By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japanese retail sales posted a second straight year-on-year rise in November, with the pace of increase accelerating from October as fuel prices continued rising and people went […]
Japan Oct Retail Sales Rebound on Fuel Price Spike, Eased Covid Restrictions
By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japanese retail sales posted the first year-on-year rise in three months in October as fuel prices continued going up and the government lifted its Covid-19 state of emergency restrictions on Oct. 1, data released Monday by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry showed. The METI maintained its assessment that […]
Japan Sept Household Spending Dips Y/Y; Q3 Drop Points to GDP Slump 
By Max Sato (MaceNews) – Japan’s household spending posted the second straight year-on-year drop in September as restrictions on economic activity remained in place until the end of the month in light of a resurgence in coronavirus cases in August, data released Friday by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed. As the number […]
Japan Sept Retail Sales Dip on Pandemic Restrictions, Slashed Car Output
(MaceNews) – Japanese retail sales came in firmer than expected in September but they still posted the second straight year-on-year drop as Covid-19 restrictions remained in place until the end of the month and supply chain disruptions choked new car deliveries, data released Thursday by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry showed. The ministry […]