Household expenditure data from Japan below expectations
Japan’s household spending rose for the first time since February 2023 but fell short of forecasts.
Real household expenditures in Japan increased by 0.5 percent annually in April, the first time since February 2023. Economists’ expectation was for growth of 0.6 percent.
Average monthly consumption expenditure per household in April increased by 3.4 percent in nominal terms to 313,300 yen.
The average monthly income per household was 566,457 yen, an increase of 2.3 percent in nominal terms and a decrease of 0.6 percent in real terms compared to the previous year.
April’s data is important as most Japanese companies restart their fiscal year and introduce corporate changes in that month; This means that the record wage increases that unions have managed to negotiate this year will most likely take effect from April.