Consumers Spend More Than Before Pandemic But At Slower Pace
Consumer spending in Japan rose above pre-pandemic levels in the first half of July. But the pace of increase slowed as the nationwide number of coronavirus infections climbed.
The findings were compiled jointly by data-analysis firm Nowcast and credit-card company JCB. The companies publish an index that tracks consumption trends based on credit-card payments.
The reading for the first half of last month was up 5.7 percent from the three-year average for the same period up to 2018.
But the pace of increase was slower compared to the second half of June.
Not all industries benefited from the spending trend. Payments were down 52.6 percent for travel, 25.5 percent for transport and 6.5 percent for dining-out compared with pre-pandemic levels. The margins of declines widened from half a month earlier in all three categories.