Consumer sentiment worsens for 1st time in 2 months

May 3, 2018

Tokyo- Consumer sentiment in Japan deteriorated for the first time in two months in April, mainly reflecting higher electricity rates, a Cabinet Office survey showed Wednesday.

The consumer confidence index, gauging households' outlook on living conditions over the next six months, fell 0.7 point from the previous month to 43.6 after seasonal adjustment, according to the survey, which covered households of two or more members.

The Cabinet Office downgraded its assessment of consumer sentiment for the first time in two months, saying that sentiment is on a weak note. In the previous month's report, the government agency said the recovery in sentiment was in a lull.

For April, all four component indicators of the index, on employment, willingness to buy durable goods, overall livelihood and income growth, went down.

The report also showed that the proportion of households expecting prices to be higher a year later was up 2.5 percentage points from the previous month at 82.3 pct.

"Jumps in fresh vegetable prices have come to a halt, but continuing hikes in electricity and gas bills, as well as in parcel delivery fees, pushed down the index," an official of the Cabinet Office said. Jiji Press