Department store sales rose slightly in October for the second consecutive month, while supermarket sales shrank for the 20th month running, industry bodies said Thursday.
Department store sales nationwide rose 0.1 percent from a year earlier to 652.5 billion yen on a same-store basis, helped by robust sales of women's clothing and sundry goods, the Japan Department Stores Association said. This compared with a 0.8 percent increase in September.
Continued strong sales in the Nagoya and Osaka areas helped push up the overall figures. Tokyo department store sales dropped 1.5 percent in a turnaround from a 0.5 percent increase the previous month, affected by relatively high temperatures and a decline in demand from companies, it said.
Combined department store sales in Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Kobe, Nagoya and Yokohama advanced 0.1 percent for the second consecutive month of rises.
October supermarket sales declined 4.6 percent on a same-store basis from a year earlier to 1.17 trillion yen, weighed down by a slump in sales of winter clothing and air conditioners, the Japan Chain Stores Association said. The figure reflects relatively high temperatures.