Japan Core Inflation Rate

The core consumer price index in Japan, which excludes fresh food but includes fuel costs, jumped 2.1% in April 2022 from a year earlier, hitting a more than seven-year high and rising above the Bank of Japan’s 2% target, driven by a weak yen and surging energy and other raw material costs. The core inflation print also rose for the eight straight month and accelerated from a 0.8% increase in March. The rise in consumer prices poses a challenge for the Japanese central bank which has retained its massive monetary stimulus as it seeks to have inflation stably reach 2% on the back of strong wage growth. Meanwhile, the overall rate of price increases in Japan has remained modest compared with much sharper rises in the US and other advanced economies, as sluggish wage growth makes it harder for firms to pass on higher prices to consumers.