Prices of 143 products from 195 major food and beverage makers in Japan are set to rise in November, down 58.4% from a year earlier and marking the first decline in 11 months, Teikoku Databank said Friday.
By category, confectionery items such as chocolate and cookies topped the list, with 49 items, the research firm said. Shipment prices will increase about 5-15% for 16 Fujiya products, including Milky Chocolate Bag.
Prices of 46 processed food items will go up. Hagoromo Foods and Marumiya will raise the prices of retort pouches and other products.
According to Teikoku Databank, the total number of items for which prices have been raised this year stood at 20,580 as of the end of October.
Regarding the trend for next year and later, a Teikoku Databank official said that "there's a possibility sustained price hikes will continue" due to increases in labor costs reflecting wage hikes.
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