BUSINESS

June department store sales in Japan fall 19%

An employee holds a board reminding customers to maintain social distancing at the entrance of a department store in Kobe on May 22. | KYODO

Kyodo

Jul 21, 2020

Japan's department store sales declined 19.1 percent from a year earlier in June, improving from sharper falls in the previous months after the lifting of a state of emergency over the new coronavirus allowed stores to reopen, an industry body said Tuesday.

Sales in June improved from a drop of 65.6 percent in May and a record fall of 72.8 percent in April, according to data by the Japan Department Stores Association.

Sales at 203 outlets run by 73 operators totaled ¥383 billion ($3.5 billion) on a same-store basis, marking the ninth straight month of decline, the body said.