Japan’s retail sales fell for an 11th month in July, extending the longest losing streak since 2003, as poor weather and a worsening job market kept shoppers at home. Sales slid 2.5 percent from a year earlier, the Trade Ministry said today in Tokyo. The median estimate of 15 economists surveyed by Bloomberg was for a 3.5 percent drop. Consumers cut spending at the fastest pace in five months in July amid falling wages and a record-high jobless rate. The record 25 trillion yen ($266 billion) in stimulus spending that helped Japan’s economy expand for the first time in more than a year has failed to bolster sales at ... (full story)