Editorial

15:00 JST, May 18, 2025

High prices have continued, and personal consumption remains weak. The impact of the tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump will become more serious in the future. The government needs to implement measures to support the economy.

The preliminary estimate of the nation’s real gross domestic product for the January-March quarter in 2025 showed an annualized decline of 0.7% year-on-year. This marks the first negative growth in four quarters. The GDP decline was largely due to the slow growth of personal consumption, which accounts for the majority of the GDP and edged up only 0.2% because of rising prices.

The sharp rise in the price of rice, a staple food of Japan, has dampened consumer sentiment. Demand for other everyday foodstuffs such as meat and vegetables remained........

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