Japan Household Spending

Household spending in Japan fell 3.0% yoy in October 2025, missing market expectations for a 1.0% rise and reversing a 1.8% gain in the prior month. It marked the first decline since April and the steepest pace since January 2024, underscoring persistent cost pressures heading into year-end. The Internal Affairs Ministry pointed to softer household spending on food, entertainment, and automobiles as the main drivers of the decline. Officials stressed that it is too early to determine if the weakness is transitory, emphasizing that consumption overall remains in a recovery stage. On a monthly basis, personal spending fell 3.5%, against consensus of a 0.7% increase and after a 0.7% decrease in September.