Japan’s core consumer prices up 2.7 pct in July

TOKYO, Aug. 23 (Xinhua) — Japan’s core consumer prices rose 2.7 percent in July from a year earlier, with the size of increase expanding for the third straight month on higher energy costs following the end of government subsidies, government data showed Friday.
The increase in the nationwide core consumer price index (CPI), excluding volatile fresh food, followed a 2.6 percent rise in June, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
The inflation rate has remained at or above the 2 percent inflation target of the Bank of Japan (BOJ) since April 2022, data showed.
Core-core CPI, which excludes both fresh food and energy costs and is closely watched by the BOJ as a key gauge of broader inflation trends, rose 1.9 percent.
Energy prices advanced 12.0 percent, accelerating from 7.7 percent in the previous month, as the government’s measures to bear part of the rising energy costs ended in June.
Electricity costs grew 22.3 percent, the biggest rise since 1981 when the oil shock jacked up fuel prices, while the price of city gas gained 10.8 percent, the ministry said.
The government recently decided to resume the subsidies temporarily from September.
Among major items, food prices climbed 2.6 percent, while those for durable goods increased 5.2 percent due to higher demand for air conditioners amid record high temperatures for the month, according to the ministry. ■