According to Japanese media reports, on April 26, local time, the yen exchange rate against the US dollar in the New York foreign exchange market once fell below 158, hitting a new low of about 34 years since May 1990.
The depreciation of the yen has accelerated, and the cost of living for local people has risen, but it has also given some opportunities to some domestic consumers and investors. According to the "2024 May Day Holiday Travel Vane" released by relevant travel platforms, Japan has become the most popular destination abroad, and "there is a long queue in front of Japanese luxury stores" has also been on the hot search recently. The reporter learned that at present, a large number of people have joined the purchasing army and began to travel back and forth between China and Japan.
The yen hit a 34-year low
International students: The desire to stay in Japan and work is reduced
In the New York foreign exchange market on April 26, the yen fell sharply against the dollar, briefly falling below 158 yen to 1 dollar, once again refreshing a new low in 34 years. As of the latest data, the yen settled at 158.34 per dollar, a new low in about 34 years since May 1990.
USD/JPY exchange rate
Under these circumstances, the continued depreciation of the yen has led to continued imported inflation in Japan, and prices of food and daily necessities, especially food and daily necessities, have continued to rise.
Xiaowen, who is currently working in Osaka, has lived in Japan for 8 years, especially after the pandemic, and she has felt the gradual increase in the cost of living. "The average office worker in Japan earns about 200,000 yen a month, and the rent costs 50,000 or 60,000 yen, which accounts for 40% of the salary, but now the landlord has begun to charge the so-called management fee in disguise, but the salary has not increased. Xiaowen told reporters that not only himself, but many friends around him have encountered rising rents.
Xiaowen felt that the rise in food prices was also very obvious, she told reporters, especially the price of McDonald's may have risen three or four times in a year, not only canceled some cheap packages, basically each one has risen by about 50~100 yen. Because of the continuous depreciation of the yen, Xiaowen and his friends have become more cautious about traveling abroad for vacation.
"In fact, the government is also thinking of some corresponding countermeasures, such as the previous policy of exempting water bills for two months, which will be useful in the short term, but these measures will have little impact in the long term. Xiaowen said.
Liu Peng, another international student in Japan, said that the yen has been depreciating for almost two years, and the biggest impact is the shrinkage of assets, and for international students, the desire to stay in Japan is getting lower and lower.
LV becomes a local "specialty"
The domestic purchase boom in Japan
"When I traveled to Japan after the Spring Festival, the exchange rate was 4.7, and I thought it was relatively low at the time, but I didn't expect that the exchange rate has been falling now. Seeing the change in the exchange rate, tourist Ameng recently began to plan to go to Japan to "sweep goods". According to the data, as of April 27, the yen fell to a new low of 4.58 against the yuan, which also had a lot of impact on the daily life of Chinese people, tourism consumption, overseas investment and other aspects.
The Japanese yen against the Chinese yuan exchange rate
The reporter found that the discussion of the yen exchange rate on social platforms is hot, and many people have begun to buy yen to prepare for "bottom-copying" investment, in addition, this has also stimulated the enthusiasm of some consumers to find Japanese purchasing agents. These days, dear has posted a lot of posts on social platforms to help with purchasing, she told reporters that she originally had a regular job, and it was when she learned about the news of the sharp fall in the yen that she decided to start purchasing, "Now it's a month to fly to Japan, the number of inquiries has increased recently, and there are more purchasing agentsLV, cameras and animation peripherals, in fact, the most cost-effective is LV these luxury goods."
Netizens lined up at the door of LV on social platforms
She told reporters that taking LV's popular handbag Nano Speedy as an example, the price of the domestic counter is 14,300 yuan, and the purchase price after the tax refund at the Japanese counter is about 11,200 yuan, which is equivalent to about 20% off the domestic price.
In fact, the boom in luxury consumption in Japan can also be glimpsed from the performance of major brands. According to media reports, LVMH said in its latest earnings call that the growth of the Japanese market was not only affected by the increase in prices in the context of currency depreciation, but also because of the contribution of Chinese tourists to Japan. Although Gucci's parent company, Kering, did not perform well in the first quarter, sales in Japan bucked the trend in the first quarter, due to the advantage of the spread in the yen exchange rate to attract a large number of tourists.
Although daigou is hot, not everyone can make money. "Because it has not been a long time since I first entered the industry, and now the customs inspection is relatively strict, doing purchasing agents is not as profitable as I imagined. Dear told reporters that doing purchasing can earn back the cost of travel, and if there is enough time, I will consider continuing to do it.
Cover News Reporter Zhu Zhu
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