According to a survey conducted by the Finance Ministry, a whopping 62.1% of companies in Japan have already or plan to raise their base pay in fiscal year 2023. This marks a significant increase from the 38.7% recorded the previous year. It seems that companies are trying to secure talent and match rising prices through these wage hikes. Interestingly, the nonmanufacturing sector saw the most substantial increase, with 56.0% of companies raising wages, up from 28.8% the previous year. In contrast, the manufacturing sector recorded a slightly higher figure of 69.8%, up from 52.0%.   Additionally, there has been a significant increase in the number of companies offering raises of 3% or more. This figure has increased to 37.3% from the previous year's 13.7%. When asked why they chose to increase wages, most companies cited enhancing employee motivation, improving working conditions, and preventing employees from leaving as their main reasons. Furthermore, 64% of companies indic...