Date:2021-10-3 9:28:12 Clicks:655 【Font Size:
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Japan will see price hikes from October in some food and tobacco products as well as services, partly triggered by soaring global raw material prices, which will further hit households affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, local media reported Thursday.
Dairy producers Meiji Co. and Megmilk Snow Brand Co. announced separately that they will lift prices of their margarine products from Friday, with international prices having increased largely caused by a surge in global demand and downgrading output in major producing areas due to poor weather.
The retail price will rise relatively up to 12.8 percent for Meiji and up to 12.2 percent for the Megmilk Snow Brand.
Food and beverage maker Ajinomoto AGF Inc. said it is raising the price of its 40 coffee products, expected to soar around 20 percent. The company expects that market prices will continue rising, anticipating a recovery in global demand for coffee with economic activities which are gradually resuming after the pandemic.
Japan Tobacco Inc. will revise its pricing due to a cigarette tax hike in October, increasing the per-pack price for Seven Stars, one of the company's signature brands, from 560 yen (5 U.S. dollars) to 600 yen (5.36 dollars), according to the company's announcement.
From November, major frozen-food maker Nichirei Foods Inc. said it will lift the prices of consumer products by about 4 percent to 8 percent. Prices for commercial sales will rise around 3 percent to 10 percent to "maintain current product quality and stable supply."
Residents will also see the monthly household electricity bill along with the natural gas bill for an average household to be higher than in October, according to power and gas companies across the nation.
Japan's economy has yet to recover to pre-pandemic levels mainly due to sluggish consumer spending, which is considered to be probably affected by the price hikes.