Japan Aug retail sales rise 1.3 pct yr-on-yr on costlier fuel

Retail sales in August rose 1.3 pct from the previous year, following a 0.1 pct drop in July, as sales of fuel products jumped due to high oil prices, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said. Sales at large retail stores increased 0.1 pct, after adjustments for the change in the number of stores, and gained 0.5 pct on an unadjusted basis, the ministry said. "The contributors to the rise in August are higher fuel prices such as gasoline and kerosene, as well as vegetable prices," a ministry official said. Retail sales of fuel products climbed 8.1 pct on the year last month, the 29th straight month of increase. Sales of food and beverage retailers, the second largest contributor, rose 2.0 pct. "The temperature was high in August which helped increase sales of drinks and ice cream," the official said. Sales at supermarkets on a same-store basis rose 0.7 pct in August, the first increase in eight months, the data showed. But purchases of clothing and personal belongings dropped 1.6 pct on the year, down for the eighth consecutive month. "The headline figure is certainly stronger than in July when retail sales were hit by bad weather but the recovery is slow," said Norio Miyagawa, an economist at Shiko Research Institute. "This is because an increase in wages is slow and consumer confidence hasn't recovered enough." To encourage more spending, Miyagawa said wages should rise further. Sales at the wholesale level increased 7.7 pct last month, and commercial sales, or combined sales at the wholesale and retail levels, rose 6.2 pct, the ministry said.