Sales at Japan's department stores continued to rebound in May, rising for the third consecutive month.
The Japan Department Stores Association reported a jump of 57.8 percent from a year earlier.
Sales were brisk for luxury goods like precious metals and jewelry. Summer clothing also saw strong demand.
The figures were driven by a marked increase in shoppers during the spring holiday period. It was the first one unaffected by the government's COVID-19 restrictions since before the pandemic in 2019.
But sales have yet to regain their pre-pandemic strength, standing at 10.5 percent lower than in May three years ago.