Japan Department Store Sales Up 0.7 Pct in April

May 23, 2018

Tokyo- Sales at department stores in Japan in April rose 0.7 pct from a year before on a same-store basis, up for the second straight month, an industry group said Wednesday.

Overall sales at 220 stores run by 80 companies totaled 456.5 billion yen, the Japan Department Stores Association said.

The growth reflected brisk sales of summer items. In addition, sales of duty-free goods to foreign visitors hit a record high for the second consecutive month, at 31.6 billion yen.

Sales of summer items such as dresses and sunglasses grew, while spring clothing sales, such as coats, were poor. As a result, overall clothing sales dropped 1.3 pct.

Sales rose 17.0 pct for cosmetics and 6.6 pct for luxury products, including artworks and jewelry, on the back of robust demand from foreign shoppers.

Food product sales dropped 3.3 pct. The decline stemmed from sluggish sales of boxed meals due to early blooming of cherry blossoms this year and from soaring fresh food prices following poor catches of fish. Jiji Press