Economy Heat and quake drive up Japan's rice prices by 23%

Photo credit: Kyodo​

The average price in September last year, when rice from the 2023 harvest began hitting store shelves, was JPY 1,878. However, prices have surged since this spring amid growing concerns about a rice shortage, topping JPY 2,000 in June. Still, the increased cost of living kept demand for rice solid as consumers saw rice as relatively cheaper than other staple foods such as bread. Some consumers began stockpiling rice after the weather agency in August issued its first-ever advisory for the increased risk of a megaquake along the Nakai Trough that stretches from central to southwestern Japan in the Pacific. A surge in foreign tourists to Japan also prompted some restaurants to purchase more rice. The total spending by foreign visitors to Japan this year is expected to rise 1.8-fold to approximately JPY 9.69 trillion, according to an estimate by Katsuhiro Miyamoto, a professor emeritus at Kansai University.

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Japan's August rice price soars 23% on summer heat, quake-warning

Rice prices sold at supermarkets in Japan in August jumped 23 percent from a year earlier due to tight supply from last summer's extreme heat and a buying rush following a government advisory about a potential megaquake, a consumer data research firm reported Friday.

english.kyodonews.net

Japan's August rice price soars 23% on summer heat, quake-warning - The Mainichi

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Rice prices sold at supermarkets in Japan in August jumped 23 percent from a year earlier due to tight supply from last summer's extr

mainichi.jp