Passage 3
Retail sales and consumer prices had record declines in Japan last year, the govemment said, indicating that weak personal spending continues to cripple the world's second-largest economy.
Sales fell at the nation's retailers for an unprecedented fourth straight year, with sales dropping 1.7% to 132.87 trillion yen (W.132 trillion), the Ministry of Economy. Trade and Industry announced.
Reflecting that trend, Japan's consumer prices took their biggest tumble, falling 0.7% to 101.5 points from 102.2 points.
Retail sales have been sliding since 1997, when the Japanese government raised the sales tax to 5% from 3% in an ill-timed effort to rebuild its finances
Though the economy recently has shown signs of pulling out of its deepest slump in decades, consumers worried about job and wage security remain reluctant to spend.
That was forced Japen’s retailers and other consumer industries to tower prices and move away from their time-honored practics of focusing on good servics alone to kesp consarmers satisfed.
The Japanese government has tried to give deflation positive image, stressing that failirg prices are partially a result of companies becoming more productive as once-regulated markets have been thrown open to competition.
But one of the nation's senior economic policy makers rejected that view at a recent news conference.
"Japan is the only major country to have falling consumer prices, "said Taro Aso, minister for econmic and fiscal policy and information technology, was quoted as saying by Dow Jones
“But can't' imagine that Japan is the nation to be experiencing productivity increases.
Weighing most heavily on Japan's consumer prices last year were declines in the prices of food and household items such as furniture, the Ministry of Public Management,Home Affairs and Posts and Telecommunications said in its preliminary report.
Other government statistics suggested that there are more economic challenges ahead for Japan, even though the conservative coalition government has spent record amounts of taxpayers'money trying to boost the economy.
Toky-area consumer prices closely watehed by analysts as an indicator of trends for the rest of the country, fell 0.4% in January trom a year earlier, marking a record 17 consecative morths of decline.
Falling rents and fierce competition among retailers and providers of telecommunica: services were primarily responsible for lower prices, the government said.
What does the passage mainly talk about?
A、Japan's current economic situation.
B、The economic slump in Japan.
C、record declines in prices and retail sales in japan. ax. book118.com
D、The reasons why Japanese consumers have been cutting their spending
【正确答案】：C
【名师解析】:文章主要讨论了日本零售销售和消费者价格的创纪录下降，这反映出个人消费的疲软继续困扰着世界第二大经济体。文章详细描述了零售销售的连续第四年下降，消费者价格的大幅下跌，以及自1997年日本政府提高销售税以来零售销售的持续下滑。此外，还提到了消费者对工作和工资安全的担忧，导致他们不愿消费，迫使零售商和其他消费品行业降低价格，改变他们一贯只关注良好服务的做法。文章还提到了日本政府试图给通货紧缩一个积极的形象，强调价格下降部分是因为公司变得更有生产力，但这一观点被一位高级经济政策制定者在新闻发布会上拒绝。最后，文章指出食品和家庭用品价格的下降对日本消费者价格的影响最大，并且尽管政府已经花费了创纪录的纳税人资金试图刺激经济，但日本仍面临更多的经济挑战。因此，正确答案是C，即文章主要讨论了日本的价格和零售销售的创纪录下降。
