Domestic wholesale and retail sales fell a combined 3.7 percent in 2002 to 582.27 trillion yen, declining for the 11th straight year and by the largest margin since 1999, the government said Tuesday.

Retail sales fell 3.9 percent to 130.76 trillion yen for the sixth straight yearly decrease and the largest dip since 1998, and sales by wholesalers were down 3.6 percent to 451.51 trillion yen, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry said in a preliminary report.

The large drop stems from sluggish consumption particularly in the first half of the year, a METI official said.