Dentsu Inc. Conducts "Nationwide Survey of 10,000 People" Ahead of October Consumption Tax Increase

The text of the Dentsu Inc. news release distributed on February 21 is as follows.

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February 21, 2019

Nearly 70% rush to make purchases. 40% intend to buy several months' worth at once

Nearly 70% of seniors intend to use cashless payments at small-to-medium retailers offering point rewards

Dentsu Inc. (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo; President: Toshihiro Yamamoto) conducted a "Nationwide Survey of 10,000 People" targeting 10,000 men and women aged 20 to 69 nationwide. The survey aimed to understand their "awareness and understanding" of the planned 10% consumption tax increase scheduled for October 2019, as well as their "current awareness of countermeasures."

This marks our first survey on consumption tax awareness since June 2013. The analysis compares results with past surveys and examines consumption intentions for items not subject to the reduced tax rate.

The seven key findings from this survey are as follows:

■ Awareness Status

1. Over 80% of respondents are aware of the consumption tax increase to 10% (Previous: 62.3% ⇒ Current: 80.7%). This represents an increase of 18.4 percentage points compared to the previous consumption tax hike.

■Pre-tax hike demand

2. Nearly 70% of respondents plan pre-tax hike purchases. This is an increase of about 7 points compared to the previous tax hike (60.2% ⇒ 67.1%). Purchase intentions are particularly high for daily necessities like shampoo and detergent (16.7% ⇒ 27.5%).
Conversely, pre-tax hike demand for high-priced items like housing, cars, and durable appliances decreased by 3.7 points compared to the previous consumption tax hike.

3.   Approximately 40% intend to stockpurchase several months' worth of non-reduced-tax items like canned beer , canned chuhai, cigarettes, and daily necessities.

■Rethinking Purchases and Shopping Locations

4. Paid email newsletters , in-app purchases for social games, and annual passes for leisure facilities are targets for reconsideration due to the consumption tax hike.

5.   Frequency of use at supermarkets , 100-yen shops, online shopping, and drugstores is expected to increase.

■Cashless Payments Related

6.  Approximately 70% of respondents indicated they would use cashless payments more often. This trend is particularly pronounced among seniors.

7.   Over 70% of seniors stated they would use cashless payments whenever possible at small and medium-sized retailers if point rewards were offered.

For details, please refer to the Dentsu Inc. News Release [PDF].

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Dentsu Inc. News Release
http://www.dentsu.co.jp/news/release/2019/0221-009762.html