Japanese workers’ inflation-adjusted real wages showed no growth in April, indicating consumer spending could remain weak in the near future.
The unchanged reading comes after a downwardly revised 0.7 percent annual increase in real wages in March. Further, nominal wages rose at an annualised rate of 0.8 percent in April, slower than a downwardly revised 2.0 percent annual gain in March.
The drop in real wages also indicates the Bank of Japan’s (BOJ) 2 percent inflation target will likely remain elusive for a long time.