The toy market in Japan is on an upward trend despite the country's declining birthrate, boosted by robust demand by adults seeing gadgets as an affordable hobby and means to connect with others via social media, a research firm said.The market in fiscal 2024 grew 7.9 percent from a year earlier to a record 1.1 trillion yen ($7.4 billion), led by trading cards and character merchandise, expanding 36 percent from 10 years ago, according to the Japan Toy Association.Other toys that saw notable sales growth were high-tech toys such as "Original Tamagotchi," a small egg-shaped video game, and s…READ FULL ARTICLE
