The prices of more than 400 kinds of food in Japan have risen so far in July, with the prices of various imported fruits hitting new highs due to depreciation of the Japanese yen.
So far in July, the prices of 411 food items climbed in the country, with the markups of imported red wine, whiskey and other goods increasing significantly, some of which even going up by as much as 50 percent.
The rise in the prices of cocoa beans and coffee beans has driven up related food and beverage prices.
At the same time, the prices of fruits imported from Southeast Asia have also risen rapidly, with the wholesale price of bananas hitting a five-year high and that of pineapples reaching an all-time high.
Since the beginning of 2024, the number of food products whose prices have been or are planned to be raised has exceeded 10,000, the third consecutive year to pass this number.
According to statistics released by the relevant survey institutions, since 2021, aquatic products, egg products and snacks have seen the largest price increases in Japan, with an overall uptick of more than 20 percent.
Japan's consumer price index, or the core CPI, went up 2.8 percent in the fiscal year 2023 ending by March 2024, with the markup of food excluding fresh food hitting a 48-year high.
The Japanese yen continued to drop further to a 38-year low against the U.S. dollar on Wednesday, Japanese media Nikkei reported.
The U.S. dollar rose to as high as 161.83 yen in New York, marking the Japanese currency's weakest level since December 1986.
Prices of more than 400 food items tick up in Japan in July
China Media Group (CMG), China's flagship broadcaster, held a cultural exchange event at the Nauruz Palace in Tajikistan's capital city Dushanbe on Friday to further promote people-to-people exchanges between the two countries.
The event coincides with Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to the Central Asian country.
Shen Haixiong, vice minister of the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and president of CMG, Tajik Culture Minister Sattoriyon Matlubahon Amonzoda, Chairman of the National Radio and Television Commission of Tajikistan Nuriddin Said, former Secretary-General of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Rashid Alimov, along with other distinguished guests, attended the event and delivered speeches.
Guests emphasized the longstanding and continually growing friendship between China and Tajikistan, and highlighted the need to make full use of the opportunity afforded by this event to further promote cooperation between the two countries and advance common development.
The event featured a musical performance by students and teachers from the Tajik National Conservatory, who played traditional Chinese instruments and Tajik national instruments to perform classic Tajik pieces titled "Friendship" and "Silk Road Symphony," which symbolize the enduring bond between the two countries.
During the event, the "China Up Close" joint media interview activity was also launched. The initiative will see Tajik mainstream journalists travel across China and experience the unique charm of the country through interviews, observations and research.
China-Tajikistan cultural exchange event held in Dushanbe
