— See Separate Table For Details Of Individual Forecasts
TOKYO (MNI) – Japanese retail sales in May appeared to have posted
a third straight year-on-year drop, down by 2.2%, but the pace of
decline would be slower than the 4.8% drop in April, according to the
median forecast by economists polled by Market News International.
The Ministry of Economy Trade and Industry will release the data on
Tuesday, June 28 (2350 GMT Monday).
Falls in sales of automobiles and consumer electronics are expected
to be smaller in May than in April.
New vehicle sales fell 37.8% in May from a year earlier to 142,154
units, but the sales drop narrowed from -51.0% in April, which was the
biggest single-month decline on record, according to the Japan
Automobile Dealers Association.
Shipments of audio visual consumer electronics in the domestic
market fell 5.8% y/y in May, compared with -13.5% in April, data
released by the Japan Electronics and Information Technology Industries
Association show.
Economists said improvement in consumer sentiment supported May
retail sales.
Japan’s seasonally adjusted Consumer Confidence Survey index
bounced back to 34.2 in May from a two-year low of 33.1 in April,
marking the first month-to-month rise in four months, Cabinet Office
data showed.
skodama@marketnews.com
** Market News International Tokyo Newsroom: 81-3-5403-4838 **
[TOPICS: M$J$$$,M$A$$$,MAJDS$]
