Japan's expanded state of emergency over the novel coronavirus pandemic is expected to dent consumer spending by more than ¥2 trillion ($19.3 billion) as the declaration could lift unemployment and cut sales at dining establishments and retailers, economists have said.
Takahide Kiuchi, executive economist at the Nomura Research Institute, estimates that consumption will be reduced by ¥2.3 trillion, as Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said Wednesday the state of emergency declared for Tokyo and three neighboring prefectures last week was being extended to another seven prefectures.
The loss corresponds to 0.4% of Japan's annual gross domestic product in nominal terms, with residents' income in the capital and the other 10 prefectures including Osaka, Aichi and Fukuoka accounting for 60.6% of the country's economy, Kiuchi said.