Japan's supermarket sales in fiscal 2023 rose 3.7 percent from the previous year on a same-store basis, marking the largest rise since 1991, as price hikes for food and other goods propped up sales, an industry body said Tuesday.
Sales at 10,920 supermarkets operated by 54 companies totaled 13.73 trillion yen ($88.7 billion), with shoppers also buying more items as they became less frugal in March, according to the Japan Chain Stores Association.
Same-store sales for March alone were up 9.3 percent from a year earlier, increasing for the 13th consecutive month.
An increase in the average number of items purchased per person accounted for a large part of the growth, but an association official has noted that such movements may be temporary.
Food sales rose 11.7 percent in the reporting month from a year earlier amid price hikes in groceries and soaring prices of agricultural produce.
Household products, including toiletries and home appliances, also rose 7.4 percent in March, while sales of clothing sank 3.3 percent.
Clothing sales struggled for much of the fiscal year due to unseasonable weather, but overall sales were boosted by household goods amid continued price hikes by manufacturers, the association said.
