The average price of rice sold at about 6,000 stores across Japan dropped for the 8th week in a row. For the week ending July 13, the price was 3,468 yen (including tax) for 5 kilograms—66 yen cheaper than the previous week.
Japan's Ministry of Agriculture is now using private data from supermarkets to better track price trends. Officials say the continued drop is likely due to the increased sale of government stockpiled rice sold at lower prices.
Looking at different regions, all 9 areas had average prices under 4,000 yen. The highest was in the Tokai region at 3,763 yen, followed by the Kanto (Tokyo area) at 3,608 yen. The cheapest was in Kyushu and Okinawa at 3,116 yen, followed by Hokkaido at 3,164 yen.
The price gap between regions narrowed to 647 yen.
by MagazineKey4532