In a report released on Tuesday, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry announced that household spending in August experienced a 1.9 percent year-on-year decline, amounting to 297,487 yen. This figure surpassed analysts' predictions, which had anticipated a decrease of 2.6 percent, particularly after the 0.1 percent rise recorded in July.
Meanwhile, the average monthly income per household saw a 2.0 percent increase from the previous year, reaching 574,334 yen. On a month-to-month basis, household spending rose by 2.0 percent, again outperforming expectations, which had projected a modest 0.5 percent increase following a 1.7 percent downturn in the prior month.