Consumer confidence rises in Japan.

Consumer confidence in Japan rose from 45.9 points in December 2006 to 48.1 points in January 2007. All of the four sub indexes in the survey rose as well. The survey was conducted on January 15, 2007. A total of 6,720 households were involved. There were 5,040 two person households and 1,680 one person households. The Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI) of Japan's Cabinet Office is the source of the statistics, which were released on February 13, 2007.

The January 2007 overall confidence score was just slightly below the average overall confidence score for the full year 2006 of 48.3 points. For 2006, a graph of Japan's overall confidence scores slopes downward. The high score during 2006 was 50.0 points, which was recorded in April 2006.

In the January 2007 survey consumers were feeling significantly better about their "overall livelihood." Some consumer surveys from other markets might term this sub index as a perception of household finances. In any event, the overall livelihood sub index increased from 43.5 points in December 2006 to 45.8 points in January 2007. A graph of 2006 scores of the livelihood sub index likewise slopes downward, virtually indistinguishable from the overall confidence graph.

Respondents to the ESRI survey told interviewers they were also more optimistic about their income growth prospects. The income growth sub index grew from 42.1 points in December 2006 to 44.7 points in January 2007. This was the lowest score for all of the sub indexes.

The highest score in the January 2007 consumer confidence survey was the employment sub index. It stood at 51.8 points in January 2007 having increased from 49.0 points in December 2006. The employment sub index posted strong results for the entire year 2006. The average was 52.8 points for 2006. And this average was higher than all of the other sub indexes.

Finally, when the ESRI survey measured consumer willingness to buy durable goods, the total score was found to be higher in January 2007 than in December 2006, at 50.2 points and 48.9 points respectively.

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