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Comment by ekianjo | Hacker News Reader

> . The result: Japan has escaped deflation. The stock market is up, growth is way up and even wages are finally starting to rise.

where?? Wages have not moved up at all. But hey, my shopping list's total price has gone up by 30% in the past 6 months, and Uniqlo has just announced that for the first time in like 20 years they are going to raise their prices in Japan, because hey, a weak Japanese yen makes commodities more expensive and they just can't continue like that anymore.

But yeah, Abe's the Best Ever!

What a joke of an article.

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Where do you shop? My prices have gone up by about 5%. Groceries have mainly remained the same for me. The consumption tax has also been raised, do not forget. I believe Uniqlo planning to raise prices does not reflect a　failed fight against inflation.

The consumption tax went from 5% to 8% right? Not sure why they decided to go with such a regressive tax instead of other alternatives :(

I've since increases since the sales tax went active that have nothing to do with a 3% increase, more like a 10-15 % increase in prices. Milk has gone up from 170 JPY where I shopped to 200 JPY in a matter of weeks. And that's just one item, I can give you dozens of examples like that. Anyone who's claiming there's no inflation is clearly blind or refusing to see the truth out there. Most of the time, these people happen to the politicians in power. Strange coincidence.

A lot of businesses used the consumption tax increase to raise prices. I attended an expo for English language school owners last year and most said they were planning to raise their prices and hope no one would notice.

As I drove by a barber shop on April 1st, they were changing their sign from 2500 yen for a haircut to 2900. A tad more than 3%.

The clinic my wife works at raised one of their monthly services from 7000 yen per month to 12000 yen!

Yeah, that's exactly what I am talking about. Glad there are some people with a pair of eyes out there.

> A lot of businesses used the consumption tax increase to raise prices.

That. And the government encouraged it. In 2004, a law made it obligatory to display prices with consumption tax included (税込み). That obligation was lifted 6 months ago. Guess what happened as a result. Displayed prices didn't change. Products at 1000 yens tax included (税込み) are now 1000 yens without tax (税抜き). 1080 yens out of consumer pockets, instead of 1029. 8% increase instead of ~3%. The flip side is that this makes for better margins for businesses.

Even businesses that did absorb the tax increase now claim to do a bigger favor than they are actually doing (that is, their 1000 yens service is still 1000 yens, but they advertize it's 1000 instead of 1080)

I haven't seen much of the kind of prices increases you describe, though.

Ah, I didn't know about that. When I came to Japan it seemed every price was always tax included. I have noticed recently that some places have tax being extra. Now I see why.

> Uniqlo planning to raise prices does not reflect a　failed fight against inflation.

Uniqlo is a good example because they had never changed their pricing no matter how up and down the economy went in the past decades. The fact that they are doing it now is actually very worrying as a trend for Japan. It means they had no choice but to do that.

Prices have only gone up 30% if you keep all your money in Euros/Dollars. Purchasing power has only gone down something like 2% over the past year (which considering the freefall of the Yen is pretty impressive).

I guess you meant "prices have only gone up 30% if only buy imported goods"?

I think purchasing power has gone down more than 2%, because of the sales tax hike. Otherwise you have a point.

I couldn't find a source for that number but I remember reading it a month or so before the tax hike

I don't buy imported goods. I am talking about groceries and everyday life expenses including energy. Prices have definitely gone up. I keep my receipts for 5 years.

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