Sales of convenience stores in increased by 0.6 percent in August from a year earlier, up for the third straight month, backed by brisk sales of cold noodles, beverages and other summer items amid relatively hot weather.
Same store sales of nine major chains totaled ¥869.4 billion ($8.53 billion), the Japan Franchise Association said Tuesday.
But the number of customers fell 0.6 percent from a year earlier to around 1.42 billion, the sixth consecutive month of decrease, the association said, as heavy rainfall in northern and eastern Japan due to typhoons prevented some consumers from visiting convenience stores.
However, spending per customer rose 1.2 percent to ¥612, up for the 17th consecutive month.