Hotter-than-usual weather this summer is estimated to have pushed up overall consumer spending by a real 0.3 to 0.4 percent from June to August, a private think tank said Friday.
As a result of its study on the relation between June to August average temperatures and consumption of such summer products as beer and air conditioners over the past 25 years, Sumitomo-Life Research Institute Ltd. found that when the average monthly temperature was 1 degree higher than usual, spending on such seasonal products rose 2.1 percent, pushing up overall consumer spending by 0.2 percent.
In the June to August period this year, the average monthly temperature was 0.8 to 2.5 degrees higher than usual.
This can be translated as having pushed up overall consumer spending by a real 0.3 to 0.4 percent, the think tank said.
In the 1980s, the rise in consumption of summer products was accompanied by an increase in spending on other products, said Shoichi Yamazaki, an economist at the think tank.
In the 1990s, however, this tendency could not be seen, the economist said, adding that a large impact on overall personal consumption can therefore not be expected from a hot summer.