Japan’s retail sales lift for 11th consecutive month

Japanese retail sales continued to grow in September with the archipelago nation recording its 11th consecutive month of revenue growth in retail. For the four weeks to September 30, retail sales increased 2.1% on the same period last year, according to data by the Japanese trade ministry.

However, the growth was slower compared to August’s 2.7% expansion in the prior month, signalling a potential slow down in retail spend ahead of the busy Holiday period.

Last month’s gains were led by rising gasoline prices and high sales of machine tools, as well as food and beverage purchases and clothing.

In September, car sales slipped and online retailers suffered a decline, said the report.

On a month-on-month basis, retail sales fell 0.2% in September from the previous month, following August’s 0.9% increase.

The dropped was the first in four months, adding to fears that consumer spending fell yet again in the third quarter.

Meanwhile, Japan’s annual core consumer inflation gained 1% in September, the fastest in seven months. However, the inflation was boosted mostly by higher oil prices.

The retail growth follows a survey from Criteo that states Japanese consumers lead the world in mobile transactions, with customers shopping more while commuting.

In the latest survey, mobile devices accounted for 55% of all EC transactions, up 4 points on the year. Transactions through smartphones increased 9%, and tablets 3%, but purchases by PC were down 9%.