Prices
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¥1,500 Minimum Wage Target: 45% of SMEs Already Forced to Raise Pay, But Price Pass-Through Stalls at 50%
Against the government's ¥1,500 minimum-wage target, 45.1% of SMEs have already raised wages because of the minimum wage floor, and 35.0% report profit compression with no recourse. With the labor-cost pass-through rate stuck at 50%, this column analyzes where the cost of wage hikes goes and the structural problem embedded in minimum-wage policy as seen from the supply side.
5.26% Wage Hike, Fourth Straight Year of Negative Real Wages — How Japan's Triple Squeeze Works
Japan's 2026 spring talks produced a 5.26% nominal raise — third year above 5% — yet real wages fell for the fourth straight year. Inflation, higher premiums, and the new childcare levy absorb most gains; estimated take-home growth is just +1.3%.
The Structure of Price Hikes — Why Only Food Keeps Rising
Food CPI rose +6.8% year-on-year while the overall index climbed +3.2%. Why do food prices stand out? Japan's 38% food self-sufficiency rate, yen depreciation, the 2024 logistics crisis, and intermittent energy subsidies converged to push over 20,000 food items to price increases in 2025. The Engel coefficient reached 28.6%, the highest in 44 years. This article dissects the structure behind the 'price hikes.'
Cities Where Prices Rose and Cities Where They Didn't — The Structure of Regional CPI Disparities
Visualizing regional price disparities invisible in Japan's national average CPI. Examining the gap between Tokyo (104.0) and Gunma (96.2), higher inflation rates in Hokkaido and Okinawa, and how price-adjusting minimum wages shrinks Tokyo's apparent 'affluence.'
Japan's Consumption Tax Regressivity Depends on the Lens — Effective Burden Rates and the Social Insurance Blind Spot
Japan's consumption tax regressivity is a fact on an annual income basis, but some argue it is proportional over a lifetime. Households earning under 3 million yen bear an effective rate of 5.7%, while those earning over 10 million bear just 2.1%. The reduced rate has limited effect, and refundable tax credit discussions are accelerating. Combined with social insurance premium regressivity, we unpack the full picture of structural tax burdens.
The Silent Erosion of Disposable Income — How Inflation and Rising Social Insurance Premiums Are Squeezing Household Finances in 2026
Real wages have declined four years in a row; the Engel coefficient has reached a 44-year high of 28.6%; the national burden rate stands at 46.2%. With rising prices and social insurance premiums advancing simultaneously in 2026, how is middle-class disposable income changing? This article reads through the three-layer structure of "invisible tax increases" using data from the Daiwa Institute of Research and the Dai-ichi Life Research Institute.