Higher raw material costs, intensifying price competition and stronger consumer thrift
First written in FY2016-Q3. 19 of 39 entries say "Worsened", first in FY2017. Latest entry: 2026-09-28.
Daiichi moved to the "Worse" side of this theme in 2019, the same year as the typical company in this theme.
The whole theme swung hardest in 2022: 40 of 47 companies on the "Worse" side.
19 other companies' latest entry also says "Worsened".
- FY2026-H1WorsenedAnnual report
「Prices of food and beverages other than certain fresh foods continue to rise, and customers are becoming increasingly cost-conscious. In addition, the operating environment is becoming more challenging due to increases in labor costs and various expenses, concerns over shortages of petroleum-refining materials and other supplies, and intensifying competition across industries and business formats.」
In addition to rising food and beverage prices and strengthening cost-consciousness, it explicitly identifies increases in labor costs and various expenses and concerns over shortages of petroleum-refining materials and other supplies, stating that the operating environment has become more challenging amid intensifying competition. - FY2025WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry is expected to remain challenging. With prices expected to remain elevated, customers’ cost-consciousness and tendency to refrain from purchasing are expected to strengthen further. Competition among companies is also expected to intensify further across industries and business formats, while labor costs and various expenses, including water, electricity and gas costs, are expected to increase further.」
It states that cost-consciousness and the tendency to refrain from purchasing due to persistently high prices, intensifying competition across industries and business formats, and increases in labor costs and expenses including water, electricity and gas costs will continue, continuing to emphasize the challenging environment. - FY2025-H1WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry is becoming increasingly challenging. Prolonged high prices have further strengthened customers’ cost-consciousness and tendency to refrain from purchasing basic daily food products, while labor costs and various expenses are increasing and competition across industries and business formats is intensifying further.」
It states that prolonged high prices have further strengthened cost-consciousness and the tendency to refrain from purchasing, compounded by increases in labor costs and various expenses and further intensifying competition across business formats, making the operating environment increasingly challenging. - FY2024-Q2RestatedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remains challenging due to a prolonged period of high prices, which has further strengthened customers’ cost-consciousness and tendency to refrain from purchasing, as well as increases in various expenses and intensifying competition across industries and business formats.」
It continues to describe cost-consciousness and the tendency to refrain from purchasing against a backdrop of prolonged high prices, increases in various expenses and intensifying competition across business formats as a challenging industry environment. - FY2024-Q1WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remains challenging due to a prolonged period of high prices, which has further strengthened customers’ cost-consciousness and tendency to refrain from purchasing, as well as increases in various expenses and intensifying competition across industries and business formats.」
Against a backdrop of prolonged high prices, it states that the tendency to refrain from purchasing has strengthened further in addition to the previously cited cost-consciousness and selectivity, while also citing increases in various expenses and intensifying competition across business formats. - FY2023ReframedAnnual report
「Although the pace of price increases is slowing, prices are expected to remain elevated for an extended period, further strengthening consumers’ cost-consciousness and tendency to be selective. In addition, competition among companies is expected to intensify further across industries and business formats, while various expenses, including labor costs and water, electricity and gas costs, are also expected to increase further. The operating environment is therefore expected to remain challenging.」
The previous descriptions of preferences for low prices and protecting household finances, price competition and surging utility costs have been reorganized as a growing tendency to be selective due to persistently high prices, intensifying competition across industries and business formats, and further increases in various expenses. - FY2023-Q3RestatedAnnual report
「Customers’ preference for low prices and focus on protecting their household finances have strengthened further due to relentless inflation, while price competition among companies across business formats has also intensified. Together with surging utility costs, these factors are making the operating environment increasingly challenging.」
It continues to describe preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances due to rising prices, price competition across business formats and surging utility costs as factors making the industry environment increasingly challenging. - FY2023-Q2RestatedAnnual report
「Although the benefits of demand for at-home and ready-to-eat meals were sustained during the previous year, customers’ preference for low prices and focus on protecting their household finances have strengthened further due to relentless inflation. Price competition among companies across business formats has also intensified, and surging utility costs have contributed to increasingly challenging operating conditions.」
While acknowledging the benefits of demand for at-home and ready-to-eat meals, it reconfirms preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances due to rising prices, competition across business formats and surging utility costs as factors making the operating environment increasingly challenging. - FY2023-Q1WorsenedAnnual report
「Customers’ preference for low prices and focus on protecting their household finances have strengthened further due to rising prices, while price competition among companies across business formats has also intensified. Together with surging utility costs, the operating environment remains challenging.」
Preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances, as well as price competition across business formats, have strengthened further. Surging utility costs are also explicitly identified as a new cost factor. - FY2022WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry is expected to remain challenging. While COVID-19 continues to be a concern, costs are expected to increase due to a substantial rise in the minimum wage and surging raw material costs, in addition to customers’ continued preference for low prices and intensifying price competition among companies across industries and business formats.」
In addition to the previously cited preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances and price competition, the company explicitly identifies an expected substantial increase in the minimum wage and surging raw material costs, strengthening the factors contributing to the challenging environment. - FY2022-Q3WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remains challenging as price competition among companies has intensified further, while customers continue to prefer low prices and focus on protecting their household finances amid the easing of restrictions on activities related to COVID-19.」
It notes the easing of restrictions on activities, while stating that preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances continue and price competition among companies has intensified further. - FY2022-Q2WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remains challenging as price competition among companies has intensified further, while customers continue to prefer low prices and focus on protecting their household finances amid successive waves of expansion and contraction in the spread of COVID-19.」
It states that, while preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances continue, price competition among companies has intensified further. - FY2022-Q1WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remains challenging. Customers continue to prefer low prices and focus on protecting their household finances, while the benefit of increased demand from stay-at-home consumption under restrictions on going out has diminished and price competition among companies has intensified.」
It states that, while preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances continue, the benefit of increased demand from stay-at-home consumption has diminished and price competition among companies has intensified further. - FY2021RestatedAnnual report
「Although demand for food and daily necessities increased due to continued stay-at-home consumption and “small luxury” consumption associated with restrictions on going out, the supermarket industry remained challenging because customers’ preference for low prices and focus on protecting household finances grew stronger, while price competition among companies intensified.」
While acknowledging increased demand from stay-at-home consumption and other factors, it reconfirms preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances, together with price competition among companies, as factors contributing to the challenging industry environment. - FY2021-Q3RestatedAnnual report
「Although demand for food and daily necessities increased due to continued stay-at-home consumption associated with restrictions on going out, the supermarket industry remained challenging because customers’ preference for low prices and focus on protecting household finances grew stronger, while price competition among companies intensified.」
While acknowledging increased demand from stay-at-home consumption, it reconfirms preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances, together with price competition among companies, as factors affecting the challenging industry environment. - FY2021-Q2RestatedAnnual report
「Although demand for food and daily necessities increased due to continued stay-at-home consumption associated with restrictions on going out, the supermarket industry remained challenging because customers’ preference for low prices and focus on protecting household finances grew stronger, while price competition among companies intensified.」
While acknowledging increased demand from stay-at-home consumption, it continues to describe preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances, as well as price competition, as factors contributing to the challenging operating environment. - FY2021-Q1RestatedAnnual report
「Although demand for food and daily necessities increased due to continued stay-at-home consumption associated with restrictions on going out, the supermarket industry remained challenging because customers’ preference for low prices and focus on protecting household finances grew stronger, while price competition among companies intensified.」
While acknowledging increased demand for food and daily necessities from stay-at-home consumption, it continues to describe preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances, as well as price competition among companies, as factors contributing to the challenging operating environment. - FY2020RestatedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remained challenging due to slowing consumption following the consumption tax increase, customers’ continued preference for low prices, a growing focus on protecting household finances amid uncertainty about the future, intensifying price competition across industries and business formats, including online retailers and drugstores, and rising labor costs due to labor shortages.」
It continues to describe preferences for low prices and a focus on protecting household finances, intensifying competition with other business formats and online retailers, and also cites rising labor costs due to labor shortages. - FY2020-Q3ReframedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remained challenging due to slowing consumption following the consumption tax increase, consumers’ growing focus on protecting their household finances amid uncertainty about the future, and intensifying competition across industries and business formats, including online retailers and drugstores.」
The company explicitly adds competition with online retailers and drugstores to the previous framework of slowing consumption, a focus on protecting household finances and intensifying competition. - FY2020-Q2ReframedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remained challenging due to slowing consumption following the consumption tax increase, consumers’ growing focus on protecting their household finances amid uncertainty about the future, and intensifying price competition among companies.」
The previous descriptions of preferences for low prices and cost-consciousness have been replaced with the expression “a growing focus on protecting household finances” against a backdrop of consumers’ uncertainty about the future, alongside slowing consumption and intensifying competition. - FY2020-Q1WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remained challenging due to slowing consumption following the consumption tax increase, customers’ growing preference for low prices and intensifying price competition among companies.」
In addition to the previously cited cost-consciousness and price competition, the company explicitly identifies slowing consumption following the consumption tax increase as a new concern affecting the industry environment. - FY2019WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry is expected to remain extremely challenging amid growing cost-consciousness and a focus on protecting household finances following the consumption tax increase, intensifying competition across industries and business formats, declining consumption due to the declining birthrate and aging population, rising labor costs due to worsening labor shortages, and surging raw material and logistics costs.」
In addition to the previously cited preferences for low prices and cost-consciousness, competition with other business formats and labor shortages, the company explicitly identifies the consumption tax increase, declining consumption due to the declining birthrate and aging population, and surging raw material and logistics costs, broadening the demand- and cost-related risks. - FY2019-Q3RestatedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remains challenging amid changes in its operating environment, including population decline and aging, increasingly diverse purchasing behavior, and rising labor costs due to minimum-wage revisions and the need to secure personnel. Competition across industries and business formats is also intensifying, including with discount stores, drugstores and online shopping.」
It continues to describe population decline and aging, changes in demand patterns, rising labor costs, and intensifying competition with other business formats and online businesses as a challenging industry environment. - FY2019-Q2ReframedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remains challenging amid changes in its operating environment, including population decline and aging, changes in consumption patterns, and rising labor costs due to minimum-wage revisions and the need to secure personnel. Competition across industries and business formats is also intensifying, including with discount stores, drugstores and online shopping.」
The previous expressions “increasingly diverse purchasing behavior,” “labor shortages” and “online businesses” have been replaced with “changes in consumption patterns,” “securing necessary personnel” and “online shopping,” respectively, reorganizing the demand, personnel and competitive risks within the same framework. - FY2019-Q1WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry remains challenging amid changes in its operating environment, including population decline and aging, increasingly diverse purchasing behavior, and rising labor costs due to minimum-wage revisions and labor shortages. Competition across industries and business formats is also intensifying, including with discount stores, drugstores and online businesses.」
In addition to the previously cited population decline and aging, cost-consciousness and competition across business formats, the company explicitly identifies increasingly diverse purchasing behavior and competition with discount stores and online businesses, broadening its discussion of the competitive and demand environment. - FY2018WorsenedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry is expected to remain challenging. While personal consumption continues to fluctuate and consumption becomes increasingly polarized, competition across business formats, including oversupply of stores and online businesses, is intensifying. Various costs are rising and securing the necessary personnel is becoming more difficult. In addition, consumers are expected to become more cost-conscious due to uncertainty about the future of the social security system and other matters.」
In addition to the previously cited price competition, cost-consciousness and labor shortages, the company explicitly identifies an oversupply of stores, online businesses, polarized consumption, various cost increases and difficulty securing personnel, broadening concerns relating to competition, costs and demand. - FY2018-Q3RestatedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry surrounding the company remains challenging. Although personal consumption remains firm amid improving employment and income conditions, price competition across business formats is intensifying in each region, customers retain a strong preference for low prices and cost-consciousness, and labor shortages and labor costs are increasing.」
It continues to describe cross-format price competition, preferences for low prices and cost-consciousness, labor shortages and rising labor costs as a challenging industry environment. - FY2018-Q2RestatedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry surrounding the company remains challenging. Although personal consumption remains firm, customers continue to have a strong preference for low prices and cost-consciousness, while competition across business formats intensifies in each region and labor shortages worsen.」
The company continues to cite preferences for low prices and cost-consciousness and intensifying competition across business formats. The growing sense of labor shortages is also listed as a factor affecting the industry environment. - FY2018-Q1RestatedAnnual report
「Although personal consumption remains firm, the extremely challenging operating environment continues, with consumers remaining strongly cost-conscious toward food, daily necessities and other products, as well as intensifying competition in each region.」
It continues to describe persistent cost-consciousness toward food and daily necessities and intensifying regional competition as a challenging industry environment. - FY2017WorsenedAnnual report
「The extremely challenging operating environment is expected to continue, reflecting concerns over stagnant consumer spending due to uncertainty about the future, increasing cost-consciousness as consumers focus on protecting their household finances, declining demand associated with population decline and the declining birthrate and aging population, higher minimum wages and expanded social insurance coverage, rising labor costs amid labor shortages, and intensifying competition not only among peers but also with drugstores, convenience stores and other businesses.」
In addition to the previously cited cost-consciousness, rising labor costs and intensifying competition, the company explicitly identifies declining demand, expanded social insurance coverage and competition with drugstores and convenience stores. - FY2017-Q3RestatedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry surrounding our company continues to face an extremely challenging operating environment, including concerns over stagnant consumption due to anxiety about the future of social security, consumers' growing propensity to save to protect their household finances, higher labour costs against a backdrop of rising minimum wages and labour shortages, and intensifying competition among companies across business formats as well as with other supermarket operators.」
It continues to describe consumer uncertainty about the future and cost-consciousness, rising labor costs, and intensifying competition across business formats as a challenging industry environment. - FY2017-Q2RestatedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry surrounding our company continues to face an extremely challenging operating environment, including consumers' growing propensity to save to protect their household finances, higher labour costs against a backdrop of rising minimum wages and labour shortages, and intensifying competition among companies across business formats as well as with other supermarket operators.」
The report reiterates consumers' propensity to save, increased labour costs due to higher minimum wages and labour shortages, and intensifying competition across business formats as factors contributing to the challenging operating environment. - FY2017-Q1ReframedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry surrounding our company continues to face an extremely challenging operating environment, including concerns over stagnant consumption due to anxiety about the future, consumers' entrenched propensity to save, rising labour costs against a backdrop of higher minimum wages and labour shortages, and intensifying competition among companies across business formats as well as with other supermarket operators.」
Price competition and consumers' propensity to save continue, while anxiety about the future, higher minimum wages, labour shortages and increased labour costs have newly come to the fore, with no mention of soaring raw-material prices. - FY2016-Q3First statedAnnual report
「The supermarket industry surrounding our Group continues to face an extremely challenging operating environment, including price increases for products due to higher raw-material costs, intensifying price competition across industries and business formats, and a further strengthening of consumers' desire to protect their household finances and economize.」
Raw-material prices, competition and consumers' thrift orientation are identified as factors contributing to the continuing challenging business environment.