OSAKA -- It was another sweltering summer day in Den Den Town here, with the temperature expected to climb above 30 and humidity at nearly 80 percent.

Many shoppers were complaining about the Southeast Asia-like summers that have become a hallmark of not only Osaka and Tokyo but other Japanese cities in recent years.

Makoto Asai, 47, manager of an electronics goods store, is happy with the heat, however. "Hotter, longer summers mean more sales of air conditioners," he said.