Confidence among consumers in Tokyo posted a slight rise in October, reflecting the small improvements in the nation's economy, according to statistics released by the cabinet office on Friday.
There were, however, mixed results overall in the survey. The consumer confidence in Tokyo, the nation's capital, rose by 0.1 when compared to the previous month to 42.1, while it stayed at 40.5
throughout the nation for the second consecutive month. Meanwhile, throughout the nation, the index that measures thoughts on overall livelihood improved by 0.1 to 40.9, while in Tokyo it dropped by 0.4 points to 42.0.
On income growth, the nation as a whole saw its confidence grow by 0.2 points to 38.7, but in Tokyo, it dropped by 0.3 points to 39.1. And on
employment there was a drop both in Tokyo and the rest of the country. Tokyo's confidence in employment fell by 0.4 points to 37.6, while the rest of the nation posted a 0.3 point drop to 36.1 points.
On willingness to buy durable goods, however, the mood improved everywhere, with Tokyo posting a 0.4 point increase to 49.7 and the rest of the country posting a 0.2 point increase to 46.3.
The report shows that despite stimulus measures, as improvements in the production sector have failed to lead to real benefits for household
incomes, Japan's economic recovery is likely to be slow and is still at risk of failing. Japan has suffered from tough economic conditions since the
credit crisis that started in the United States last summer.