Consumers are being forced to tighten their belts by soaring food and oil prices and the expanding economic slowdown triggered last year by the subprime-loan crisis in the United States.
However, they don't hesitate to splash the cash when it comes to the one event all girls dream of — a wedding.
According to a survey on wedding trends conducted by Recruit Co.'s Zexy wedding magazine, couples spent an average of ¥4.14 million in 2007 to tie the knot, including fees for a wedding ceremony, party and honeymoon, up ¥174,000 from a year ago.