Japan salaries to slide further as inflation takes root

(MENAFN) Japanese salaries recordded a remarkable decrease since 2010, increasing pressure on household finances as inflation starts to take root, Bloomberg repoted. Regular incomes excluding overtime and bonuses fell 0.4 percent in October from a year earlier, a 17th straight monthly decline, according to labor ministry data. Total cash earnings grew 0.1 percent. The slide in wages threatens living standards as consumers face the prospect of sustained inflation on top of a sales-tax increase in April next year. As a weaker yen helps boost company profits, the focus is turning to salary talks early next year that may determine the success of Prime Minister's bid to deflate the world's third-largest economy. Prices excluding energy and fresh food increased 0.3 percent in October from a year earlier, the most in 15 years, indicating inflationary pressures are broadening beyond electricity and gas price increases fueled by the yen's decline.