Japanese Retail Prices of Rice Climb in Early Aug.

   Tokyo, Aug. 19 (Jiji Press)--Retail prices of rice at about 1,000 supermarkets across Japan averaged 3,737 yen per 5 kilograms from Aug. 4 to 10, up 195 yen from the previous week and 1.4-fold higher than a year earlier.
   The result, announced by the agriculture ministry Monday, reflects a slowdown in sales of rice released from government stockpiles.
   Blended and other no-brand rice, including government-stockpiled rice, accounted for 48 pct of the total sales, down 7 percentage points from the previous week.
   Government-stockpiled rice released under no-bid contracts totaled 11,820 tons during the Aug. 4-10 period, down from 13,257 tons the week before.
   The average prices of brand rice, which refers to specific varieties or rice from specific production areas, rose 37 yen to 4,239 yen, staying above 4,000 yen since March.

(2025/08/19-10:42)