Japan’s household spending down 1.1 pct in September

TOKYO, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) — Japan’s household spending in September dropped a real 1.1 percent from a year earlier, down for the second straight month, government data showed Friday.
In inflation-adjusted real terms in September, the household of two or more people spent an average of 287,963 yen (about 1,880 U.S. dollars), according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
Outlays on cars plunged 40.1 percent 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 health care also retreated, the data showed.
Meanwhile, expenditures on utility bills climbed 8.5 percent, 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 percent, lifted by purchases of summer clothes.
Outlays on food, which account for around 30 percent of spending, remained unchanged, as more people dined out but spent less on alcohol, while consumers looked for savings by buying chicken instead of more expensive pork, 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). ■