Household spending in August fell 0.6 pct from a year earlier, the fifth straight monthly decline, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications reported. Month-on-month however household spending rose a seasonally adjusted 4.8 pct, the first increase in three months. Household spending averaged 299,641 yen in August. The results had been expected, after the ministry reported last week that spending by households headed by salaried employees, which accounts for about 60 pct of overall household spending, fell by a real 1.3 pct in August from a year earlier. On a nominal basis, overall household spending in August dropped 1.0 pct from a year earlier. Because there is deflation in Japan, many economists say spending on a nominal basis, or spending unadjusted for changes in prices, is a more important gauge of spending because it reflects the actual impact on corporate sales and profits.