A recent survey in Japan reveals that approximately 3,000 food items are set to see price increases in October, potentially marking the highest monthly increase this year.
Teikoku Databank conducted the survey on major food and beverage manufacturers across Japan, seeking their intentions on price hikes. The results indicate that around 3,000 food items, including meat products, cooking oil, snacks, and milk powder, will see price hikes this October. The largest increases are for beverages, with prices rising up to 36%, and snacks up to 22%. Some food items have already seen two price hikes this year.
The firm noted that April previously held the record for the most number of price hikes this year with 2,897 items. The whole year is expected to see about 15,000 food items increase in price.
Japanese media attribute this wave of food price hikes to multiple factors, including yen devaluation, and rising costs of raw materials, labor, and logistics. Last year, over 32,000 food items saw price increases due to significant rises in raw material costs and increased import costs driven by yen devaluation, the highest in 30 years.
