TOKYO (Reuters) -- Japan's retail sales tumbled at their fastest pace in more than 4-1/2 years in October as a sales tax hike prompted consumers to cut spending, raising a red flag over the strength of domestic demand.
The Japanese government increased the nationwide sales tax to 10% from 8% on Oct. 1, in a bid to fix the industrial world's heaviest public debt burden, which is more twice the size the country's gross domestic product.
