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Household spending in Japan down 3.9% in January
Japan’s household spending dropped nearly four percent in January from a year earlier, according to government data released Friday, suggesting demand remains sluggish in the world’s third-largest economy. The figure released by the internal affairs ministry was largely in line with market expectations, and the fourth straight month of decline since October after the country’s sales tax hike on October 1. The January drop was partly attributed to declines in automobile- and telecommunications-related spending and expenditure on leisure activities, according to the data. The latest data come after Japan suffered ... (full story)