Japan’s Households Cut Spending Even as Wages Kept Growing

Japan’s household spending fell for a fourth consecutive month even as wages continued to grow, highlighting the fragility of consumption.

Outlays by households adjusted for inflation declined 2.9% in March from a year earlier, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications reported Tuesday. Economists had forecast a 1.3% drop. Compared with February, spending fell 1.3% on a seasonally adjusted basis.