Comments by Masahiro Endoh,  on  Change from the COVID-19 Pandemic to a New Normal: Documenting Consumption Behavior of  Two Years with Big Data

Masahiro Endoh: This study builds upon the findings of Konishi et al. (2021), who observed the evolution of Japanese consumption behavior on goods under the influence of COVID-19, up to August 2020, including the period of the first declaration of a state of emergency, using point of sale (POS) data. It extends the data used by Konishi et al. (2021) to December 2021, covering the second and third declarations of state of emergency, along with newly incorporated data on service spending and payment methods. This study describes how Japanese consumers’ consumption behaviors have evolved. Here, I reclassify the authors’ categorization of goods into three groups based on the patterns of consumption changes. First, preventive measures, such as buying thermometers and avoiding dining out, fluctuate consumption according to the number and wave of cases and government guidance. Second, personal computers and staple foods are subject to panic...