Japan's Dec retail sales fall unexpectedly as BOJ board mulls stimulus

Tokyo

JAPAN'S retail sales unexpectedly declined in December, indicating weakness in consumer spending as the central bank began a two-day meeting on Thursday to decide whether to boost monetary stimulus.

The drop adds to concerns that price gains in Japan will remain insufficient to spur economic growth, with data due on Friday that's forecast to show inflation barely above zero. Turmoil in global financial markets and the yen's recent strength add to pressure on the Bank of Japan to consider a policy adjustment to spur price increases.