Japan's real wages down for 24th straight month

TOKYO, May 9 (Xinhua) -- Japan's average monthly wages in inflation-adjusted terms logged the 24th straight month of decline in March, marking the longest period of continuous wage decline since comparable statistics began in 1991, official data showed on Thursday.

Inflation-adjusted real wages, a barometer of consumer purchasing power, fell 2.5 percent from the same month last year, larger than the 1.8 percent fall in February, according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.