Japan March household spending posts first fall in 3 months

　　div classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodivpBy Kantaro Komiyap

　　pTOKYO Reuters – Japans household spending fell in March for the first time in three months, though the drop was smaller than expected, as consumers remained wary of rising living costs despite some easing of COVID19 curbs.pdivdivdiv classBodysc17zpet90 cdBBJodiv

　　pHousehold spending declined 2.3 in March from a year earlier, government data showed on Tuesday, slower than Reuters median market estimate for a 2.8 drop and following 1.1 growth in the previous month.p

　　pOn a seasonallyadjusted, monthonmonth basis, spending rose 4.1 in March, stronger than the forecast 2.6 growth.p

　　pJapan‘s consumer inflation is at a multiyearhigh, fanned by the war in Ukraine and the yen’s rapid decline to 20yearlows.p

　　pIn March, Japanese real wages fell for the first time in three months as inflation outstripped steady nominal wage growth.p

　　pEconomists expect the worlds thirdlargest economy to have contracted an annualised 0.7 in the JanuaryMarch quarter, followed by a 5.1 rebound in AprilJune, according to the latest Reuters poll.p