Department store sales in Tokyo rose 0.5 pct in September from a year earlier to 137.3 bln yen, the Japan Department Stores Association said. The report, covering 27 department stores operated by 13 companies, is released about a week earlier than nationwide sales for both department stores and supermarkets, and is viewed as a leading indicator of nationwide consumer spending trends. A sustained rise in retail sales is being counted on to keep the Japanese economy on a recovery track amid sluggish exports. Consumer spending underpins 55 pct of the economy, and lately has been increasing due to a marked improvement in labor market conditions. But economists want to see if that trend will continue amid concerns that global economic growth may slow due to high oil prices. In September, sales jumped in four of the eight product categories and fell in the other four, the department stores association said. Sales of clothing, the largest product category accounting for 37.1 pct of total revenue, rose 2.1 pct from a year earlier. Sales of food, the second-largest category at 18.4 pct of the total, dropped 3.2 pct. Sales of furniture and home appliances, the third-largest category at 17.3 pct of the total, declined 2.0 pct. Sales of personal belongings such as handbags, jewelry and accessories, the fourth-largest category accounting for 14.2 pct of total revenue, climbed 4.9 pct. Sales of everyday household products, the fifth-largest category with 7.0 pct share, were up 8.5 pct. Sales at store restaurants and cafeterias, accounting for 2.8 pct, fell 5.5 pct. Revenue from services, a small category accounting for just 1.1 pct of total sales, rose 9.5 pct, and sales of miscellaneous items, another minor category that make up 2.1 pct of the total, declined 18.2 pct.