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Japan's real wages falls further in September

TOKYO
2023-11-07 15:08

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TOKYO, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) -- Japan's average monthly wages in inflation-adjusted terms logged the 18th straight month of decline in September as price increases continued to outpace nominal earnings growth, official data showed on Tuesday.

Inflation-adjusted real wages, a barometer of consumer purchasing power, fell by 2.4 percent from September last year, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.

Nominal monthly earnings, including base pay and overtime, rose 1.2 percent from a year ago to reach 279,304 yen (about 1,858 U.S. dollars), which failed to keep up with soaring consumer prices despite an increase for the 21st straight month.

Regular pay including basic salary in September went up 1.4 percent year-on-year, while overtime pay, a gauge of business activity, increased 0.7 percent.

Meanwhile, the consumer price index excluding imputed rent, used to calculate the real wage index, grew by 3.6 percent year-on-year, the preliminary data showed.

Separate data released by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications on Tuesday showed household spending in Japan decreased by 2.8 percent in September from a year earlier, marking a seventh month of decline.

Analysts here pointed out that the sustained decline in real wages would constrain households' purchasing power, crimping consumption and dragging down Japan's economic recovery.
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