(Finance) – Retail sales in Japan strengthen in May, but the decline in consumer sentiment in June does not herald a positive trend for this period. According to what was announced by the Ministry of International Trade and Industry (METI), the sales rose 3.6% on an annual basis after + 3.1% in April. Analysts’ estimates were for more subdued growth of 3.3%. On a monthly basis, sales grew by 0.6% after the + 1% recorded the previous month.
Wholesale sales, on the other hand, reported + 10.6% on the year and + 0.3% on the month, while total sales showed an increase of 8.6% on a trend basis and of 0.6% on a quarterly basis.
According to the Economic and Social Research Institute of the Japanese Cabinet Office, however, the confidence index in June stood at 32.1 points, from 34.1 in May.
Spending intentions (2.6 points less) contributed to the deterioration of the index, together with expectations on income (-1.4 points) and the employment situation (-1.6 points). The index remains below the threshold of 50 points, highlighting the persistence of a negative climate among the families of the Rising Sun.