Japan Supermarket Sales Up for 6th Year in FY 2025

Tokyo, April 23 (Jiji Press)–Supermarket sales in Japan in fiscal 2025 rose 2.1 pct from the previous year on a same-store basis, up for the sixth consecutive year, the Japan Chain Stores Association said Thursday. Sales at all stores in the year ended March came to 12,852.8 billion yen. The sales growth was mainly driven by a 2.8 pct rise in food sales, which accounted for 70 pct of overall sales, amid soaring rice prices. Meanwhile, the association said that throughout the year, the number of items purchased continued to decline as customers became more budget-minded. In March alone, all-store supermarket sales totaled 1,091.3 billion yen. Sales fell 1.7 pct from a year earlier on a same-store basis, marking the first decline in 13 months. The drop reflected a pullback in spring clothing sales, which had been strong a year before, as well as lower prices of agricultural products. At a press conference in Tokyo Thursday, Akio Masuda, a senior official of the association, said that manufacturers of food trays and plastic wrap have asked supermarkets to accept product price hikes, citing the impact of the situation in the Middle East. “There has been no major disruption, but we have seen some impact. We would like the government to clarify whether there is a problem and whether it could respond,” Masuda said. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]