Household spending rose a real 5.2 percent in February from a year earlier for the fourth consecutive monthly gain.

The Public Management, Home Affairs, Posts and Telecommunications Ministry said Friday in a preliminary report that families spent an average of 285,522 yen per household in February.

Household spending also increased 5.2 percent in nominal terms from a year earlier and posted a seasonally adjusted 2.1 percent gain in real terms from the previous month.

Household spending is a key gauge of personal spending, which accounts for about 60 percent of the nation's gross domestic product.