Corporate Service Prices Drop For 5th Month
The key gauge for business in Japan has dropped for the fifth consecutive month, due to a decrease in business travel amid the coronavirus pandemic.
The Bank of Japan says the Services Producer Price Index fell 0.6 percent in July from the year before. That excludes the effects of last year's consumption tax hike.
The index has been falling since March, although the pace of the decline eased somewhat in July.
Hotel prices plunged 36.7 percent, while prices for domestic air travel dropped 2.7 percent.
Conditions were better for ads and real estate services, which posted smaller declines compared to June.
The Bank of Japan says the resumption of economic activities is easing the pandemic-induced downward pressure on prices.
But it says the outlook remains uncertain for hotels. The prices for their services continue to plunge.
