After years of back-and-forth, Japan followed through with its consumption tax hike on Oct.1. In the move originally scheduled for October 2015, the country introduced a two-tier system, now taxing all goods deemed non-essential at 10 percent, while essential items like supermarket and take-out food remain at the previous flat rate of 8 percent.
According to a survey carried out by Kyodo News, about a quarter of Japanese consumers have decreased their spending in the aftermath of the price increase. , which is expected to help the country鈥檚 social services strained by an aging society. Another half said they rejected the increase.
about decreased consumer spending affecting the economy negatively. 82 percent found the new two-tier system 鈥渃omplicated鈥.
Consumption Tax
How the Japanese Consumption Tax Hike is Affecting Consumers
Description
This chart shows survey responses concerning the consumption tax hike in Japan in 2019.
