TOKYO, July 7 (Xinhua) -- Japan's inflation-adjusted real wages rose 1.4 percent in May from a year earlier, up for the fifth straight month, government data showed Tuesday.
Nominal wages, or the average monthly cash earnings per worker including base salary and overtime pay, increased 3.2 percent to 311,165 yen (about 1,922 U.S. dollars), marking the fourth consecutive month in which growth exceeded 3 percent, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.
Meanwhile, separate government data showed Tuesday that despite wage growth in May, Japan's household spending in the month edged down in real terms by 0.4 percent from a year earlier, falling for the sixth straight month.
According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, households of two or more people spent an average of 320,345 yen.
By category, food purchases, which account for more than 30 percent of total household expenditures, rose 2.4 percent on increased outlays for dining out and processed foods.
Spending on furniture and household goods jumped 23 percent, driven by stockpiling of petroleum-based products such as plastic wrap and garbage bags following heightened concerns over tensions in the Middle East.
By contrast, culture and recreation outlays, which include domestic and overseas travel, declined 3.1 percent from a year earlier as higher airline fuel surcharges linked to the Middle East conflict and the weaker yen pushed up costs and prompted households to cut back on trips.
Household spending is a key indicator of private consumption, which accounts for more than half of Japan's gross domestic product. (1 Japanese yen equals 0.0062 U.S. dollars) ■
