Japan and Deflation: Ideas Later.

Japan minister urges caution on declaring end to deflation

Article to be deleted after ideas.

Article:

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The government must make a "careful judgment" on declaring an end to deflation, economic and fiscal policy minister Minoru Kiuchi said Friday, as the Bank of Japan prepares to assess whether it has achieved its 2 percent inflation target.

Speaking at a press conference, Kiuchi stressed the need for caution over a declaration that the country has emerged from a sustained decline in prices. The government says it needs to make sure that Japan will not slip back into deflation before making such a declaration.

The BOJ is expected to decide at its two-day policy meeting from Thursday whether underlying inflation has reached 2 percent, nearly 14 years after it set the target in January 2013.

Japan's core consumer prices, which exclude volatile fresh food, have risen by more than 2 percent annually for four consecutive years since 2022, prompting some market participants to argue that the target has already been achieved.

The central bank has stressed the need to assess whether inflation is sustained once temporary factors are excluded, and whether wages are rising steadily.

The government and the BOJ issued a joint statement in January 2013 that included a commitment to monetary easing to achieve the 2 percent target.

Asked whether the statement would be revised if the government declared an end to deflation, Kiuchi declined to comment, saying the question was hypothetical.

Article source:   https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20261023/p2g/00m/0bu/033000c

Japan Dept. Stores: Updated Oct. 26, 2026

Japan dept. stores see record duty-free sales, shoppers in Sept.

Ideas

Tourism, especially foreign tourism or foreign tourists, is becoming an economic driver of the economy as it seems foreign tourism spending is now a major economic activity in Japan.

Of course the weak Japanese yen is the major driver of sales in department stores and even not to sales but the number of shoppers too and it seems many foreign tourists are taking advantage of the increased purchasing power the weak yen brings.

Having been to Japan many times and seen all of the duty-free signs and, and at least for me and my partner, going through the steps needed to get 10 percent duty-free discount just wasn't worth it at as it took a long time, at least at the two stores that we tried to get the discousant. 

Maybe the process has now improved but back then just before the pandemic it seemed to be more hassle that good for only 10 percent. but maybe they've streamlined the process now.

Maybe the spending of some customers is enough, with process being more customer friendly now, hopefully and if a customer does spend around  101,000 yen they could get back 10,100 yen, possibly but I guess it depends on other things too , which might still be worth it and again if the process now have become for friendly and less time consuming.

For example in South Korean in Sept. was the Korean thanksgiving holiday called Chuseok, and these days, many Koreans don't go to their hometowns but many prefer to travel and as the holiday this time was only 4 days that is a perfect short trip to Japan to take advantage of the weak Japanese yen and spend a little more.

Yes, the numbers from China might have decreased but Chinese consumers/customers are now moving more and more from the lower middle class to the middle class and even the upper middle class and they want to travel and have money to spend and as the yen is weak the have more purchasing power to spend in Japan.

But as suggested in other articles not all Chinese are following what Beijing is saying as there is still a sizable number traveling to Japan to take advantage of the weak Japanese yen.

An increase of 2.1 percent might not be bad but of course it depends on what share-holders think is good and of course they, for the most part, are never satisfied and always want more.

It interesting that there are 69 companies that run 169 stores in Japan which shows that no one company has a monopoly on stores or sales.

But it must be remembered, that even though there are 68 stores not all are equally profitable and its been suggested that only a handfull, mostly in the major metro areas, are making a profit and many in the rural areas or less than metro areas are not doing so well these days.

And those doing well in the major metro areas have transitioned to catering to the so-called upper middle class foreign tourists who have money to spend and burn and those dept. stores are doing very well.

Have a nice day!

Article source:  https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20261023/p2g/00m/0bu/057000c

Japan Trade Deficit: Updated Oct. 24, 2026.

Japan logs 2.8 tril. yen 1st-half trade deficit amid Middle East crisis

Ideas

Japan is a resource-poor country which means it has to import much of what it needs and as  such global prices can be a major challenge for many importers and wholesalers in Japan and of course the weak Japanese yen have a major affect too on import products and commodities.

A deficit doesn't mean Japan didn't have a lot of exports and exporting is a major economic driver for the economy but again the weak yen, which can be both positive and negative but at this time the weak yen with increased global prices is having serious challenges for the Japaneae economy.

Again, Japan is a resource-poor country and has to import almost everything which makes it very vulnerable to volatile global prices and now the Middle East situation crude oil is causing havoc globally not just in Japan.

And then there is so-called AI craze and high demand for products which drives up the cost of many electronic components everywhere globally and look no further than the price of computers on Amazon to see how since 2025 everthing related to electronics has increased.

Japan is a major export economy and exports are one of the few economic drivers that is keeping the economy going in the right direction, and like South Korea, it has very few economic drivers it can depend on the grow the economy as South Korea depends heavily on Samsung and SK Hynx and and while its good but when its not so good both economies depending on just a few economic drivers is risky.

Japan has just recently gotten back into the semiconductor game and it's nowhere near catching up to Taiwan or South Korea but it's moving forward in the right direction.

Japan, like other countries need to increase its semiconductor electronic components and more and more companies are looking to upgrae their AI capabilities and there is a race, globally, to have AI efficient operations.

Also, Japan too has been getting back into the game with production with other forms of semiconductors after seceding market share to Taiwan and South Korea over the past decade.

As the Middle East situation has not been resolved as of yet, Japan needed to find another source of crude oil and the US has been shipping more crude oil to Japan every month and it's not a humanitrian decision but of course a business decision and the US was more than willing ship its crude oil to Japan, for a price of course.

And too, as the Japanese yen is weak, unfortunately the price of crude oil from the US is even more expensive than it should be but Japan has no choice but to pay the higher price due to the weak yen.

The Japanese yen seems to either getting weaker and or stuck in a range where it can't become stronger for the good of the economy and the deteriment of importers and the domestic economy.

The Jpanese trade deficit might be seen as a negative by some but overall it also might be considered a positive and a weak yen, which seems to be the main driver of the deficit, has a silver lining in that the weak yen drives up the price of Japanese products overseas and Japanese export companies can get or bring home more income and exports can be seen as the main economic driver of the Japanese economy.

Yes, for the most part, crude oil was the main import commodity from the US as Japan had to find another source of crude oil as the Middle East its causing massive diruptions in the supply chains from that area.

China, has become a major player in car production and especially EV and hybrid vehicles and Japaneae car makers are having major challenges keeping up with what China is doing. 

But at the same time, at least for Japan car makers, Chinese cars sales in the US have not reached a point that Japan needs to be worried just yet, as there is just enough trade friction between the US and China that for the time being Japan doesn't need to worry about China seeing a major increase in market share in the US.

At the same time the market share of Japanese cars in China continues to decrease which as major concern for Japan and Japan car makers.

Have a nice day!

Article source:   https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20261021/p2g/00m/0bu/032000c

Japan Foreign Visitors: Updated Oct. 21, 2026.

Foreign visitors' spending in Japan hits record 7 tril. yen in Jan.-Sept

Ideas

Right now, as it seems, foreign visitor spending in Japan might be one of the few aeas where Japan has explicitly sees economic growth as, domestic consumer spending is not where is should be and never has been for a very long time.

Of course the weak Japanese yen plays a major role in that spending as it gives foreign visitors more purchasing power to spend a lot and actually spend a few more days in Japan than a strong yen would give.

Taiwan and Japan seem to have had very good relations for a very long time and for example whatever happened during the last war seems to have been completly forgotten which can't be said for some other countries in Asia.

And again, the weak Japanese yen is giving foreign visitors more purchasing power which means they have more money to use and spend in Japan again maybe spend a few more days in Japan do whatever they like and want.

If the average spending in Japan was 233,677, that is over $2,000 US dollars so foreign visitors seem to be spending a lot in Japan and it might be those who go Japan are not the lower-middle class or even the regular middle class but maybe the upper middle class type consumers and they have plenty to spend as needed to spend where ever.

However, this might be a trend but the number of foreign visitors to Japan fell which means, t that Japan maybe has reached its saturation point or reached it point that Asia foreign visitors have now been there done that and less are going to Japan.

And then there is the possibility, but no tangible proof yet, that the over-tourism taxes that places like Kyoto has implement might actually be starting to cause some foreign visitors to stay away and then there is the arrival tax and departure tax, if the've been implemented yet that might also be causing some visitors to stay away.

Yes, unfortunately, as usual, Japan for better or worse sometimes or many times keeps saying things that cause diplomatic challenges with China and China basically said to its citizens to stay away from Japan which many seem to be doing these days.

But at the same time if there were/was over 358 million yen spent in Japan by Chinese visitors it means there still many Chinese going to Japan these days.

For a long time, Japan was not a favorite place for many South Korean visitors as they would often go to Vietnam and China but it seems that has changed a lot as the very short trip from Seoul Gimpo to Tokyo Haneda, which I've taken many times, is only a two hour flight and you could easily make the trip a three day weekend, taking Friday off from your job, and coming back on Sunday using the same route.

And again, even though the numbers are down,  3.3 million visitors from China is still a large number of visitors which has suggested spent 358 million yen, which again suggests China has moved out of the lower middle income group to the middle income to even the upper middle income group and now many Chinese want to travel and spend their money and as the yen is weak they too have more purchasing power in Japan.

And its a little surprising that 2.5 million visitors from the US have traveled to Japan as it often takes 8 to 12 hours to get from even LA or SF to get Japan and airline tickets from the US are not cheap these days.

Have a nice day!

Article source:  https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20261021/p2g/00m/0bu/052000c

South Korea Producer Prices: Updated Oct. 21, 2026

Producer prices up for 2nd month in Sept. on higher prices of agricultural goods

Ideas

Having lived and worked in South Korea for many years I experienced the high fruit and vetgetables prices at places like Homeplus and Emart many times compared to the prices in the US or what they used to be in the US.

South Korea, whether good or not so good, has multiple layers of middlemen which tend drive up the price of products before they get to the supermarket or even the Saturday and Sunday markets in South Korea.

And now, like everywhere else these days, wholesalers and producers are quick to pass-on their increased costs to the next in the supply chain including the final retail customer.

Unfortunately, despite what the media says South Korea is not the high-tech behemoth that everyone thinks it is as 99 percent of businesses in South Korea are small or midsize which employ more than 80 percent of the workforce, and many of these small and midsize companies just can't cope with their profits margins beings squeezed due to an increase in raw material costs, energy costs, and even due to the large number of middlemen being squeezed from increasing costs up and down the supply chain.

Producer prices, seem to be very volatile being up and down many times during the year and its hard or even difficult for there to be any real exact estimate on prices which is what producers need to keep their profits margins in line with staying in business these days.

Again, unfortuanly, even an increase of 7.9 percent or 7.9 percent is too much for many of these small and mid-size companies as again, they have very thin profit margins that they have to work with and again 7.7 and 7.9 might not seem like much but it's just too much for many of these businesses.

It really doesn't take that long for the producer prices to each the supermarkets as again producers and even other middlemen seem to be very quick in passing-on their increased prices as they have no choice as they have to keep their profit margins in check or they go out of business very easily these days.

And yes, of course during Chuseok or the Korean thanksgiving period everyone is going to increase prices due the increase in demand and especially livestock and fishery products during the Chuseok holidays.

Consumers in South Korea and especially Korean households are under a lot of economic stress as prices keep increasing and of course, unfortunately, not everyone is in the upper middle income where they can, for the most part, ignore the increase in prices and there is a large number of lower income and even fixed income households that even a 1.3 percent increase in prices can be the difference between good food or less than good food to each each night.

Have a nice day!

Article source:  https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/economy/20261021/producer-prices-up-for-2nd-month-in-sept-on-higher-prices-of-agricultural-goods

Uniglo Price Increases: Update Oct. 21, 2026.

Uniqlo to raise average selling prices by about 4%

Ideas

Many companies in Japan still feel that customers are like family and stakeholders and are reluctant to increase prices too much as they fear they will lose some or many customers.

At the same time, due to very thin profit margins these days, many companies feel they have no choice but to increase prices even if only a little and again to not cause too much discomfort for their customers. 

The weak Japanese yen, which can be both a positive and negative for the Japanese economy is a significant negative for importers and as Japan is a relatively resource-poor country and they need to import much of what they need including for example Uniqlo most likely importing needed raw materials for its products.

An increase from 6,990 to 7,990 is only 1,000 yen but for some it might be enough to get a customer to re-think if they really need or want the Kando Jacket and maybe they can find something similar at GU, which is Uniqlo's sister store which usually has lower prices.

Its seems that maybe Uniqlo is feeling the affects of the weak Japanese yen and the increase in raw material costs and they are now increasing prices across the board on many products and even in store services that they used to do.

It seemed for a very long time, or maybe it just seemed that way, that Uniqlo for the most part, kept it prices just low enough to attract many groups of customers and including those in the middle income groups, even the low income groups, and even more the fixed income groups as the customers in those groups could depend on finding quality products at a relatively low price but maybe now those days might be slipping away.

Companies will always give the standard reason or response to why they are increasing prices and it might be true but its seems companies should or can find a more pleasant way to communicate with customers who might be inclined to look for alternatives and maybe some might now think Uniqlo prices have increased too much for them.

Have a nice day!

Article source:  https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20261020/p2g/00m/0bu/010000c

Japan Convenience Stores: Updated Oct. 20, 2026.

Japan convenience store Sept. sales up 0.5% on electronic cigarette demand

Ideas.

Convenience stores, some would say are like the 7th wonder of the world as they are worlds apart from convenience stores anywhere else in the world.

And as usual, as whenever there is going to be tax increase consumers will rush to buy those products as they don't want to pay a few extra yen for them or it.

Also the increase in sales might just be related to an increase in prices not necessarily an increase in traffic into the convenience stores.

It's amazing that Japan actually has seven major convenience store operators as you would think that competition would force some of them to leave the market. But it's like Japan automakers where there are eight car companies and even though some of them are subsidaries or the larger companies they all operate independently of each other, and for the most part they are all thriving except of maybe Nissan who was struggling for a while but now seems to be in better financial shape.

And again, average spending might have increased but again due to an increase in prices it shows average spending is actually up when in reality it might not be.

And as expected, the number of customers was down for the 15th consecutive month and some have suggested customers are buying more at regular supermarkets as some of the things they want and need are actually cheaper there.

And here is the supposed real story about what is going on with Japanese convenience stores. In the major metro areas such as Kyoto, Osaka, and Tokyo convenience stores are doing much better as many foriegn tourists go there not only to buy things but also for sightseeing as they've heard about how good and pratical they are from everything from fresh food, to some banking services, some post office services, not to mention ATM services all in one place.

And then there is the rest of the story about how in the rural areas or regions some convenience store operators are struggling to make ends meet. For example, some or many of the rural area stores are operated by retirees and or those who had jobs at major Japanease companies and either needed or wanted to run their own businesses and as a convenience store is a relatively easy entry type business many or some opted to get franchise with a convience store operator.

And then the challenges came with strict operating hours, some requiring them to stay open for 24 hours when there was only the husband and wife team and they couldn't find any students in the rural areas to work for them and even though in the metro areas, many have foriegn students working there, there are very few foreign students in the rural areas in Japan.

And there it the ideas of the original operators taking more of the sales from the rural stores and leaves little for the husband and wife team to live on sometimes and then there is the idea of wholesale prices that the husband and wife team have to pay and they aren't allowed to shop around for lower prices and they have to take the prices as given by the original operators, which again, sometimes leaves the husband and wife team with almost nothing.

But the convenience stores in the major metro areas are doing very good, so it makes it look like all convenience stores in Japan are doing good which they aren't.

Have a nice day!

Article source:  https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20261020/p2g/00m/0bu/032000cf