Core inflation in Japan’s capital accelerates to 2.7% in October

CORE consumer inflation in Japan’s capital Tokyo, considered a leading indicator of nationwide trends, hit 2.7 per cent in October, data showed on Friday (Oct 27), accelerating from the previous month in a sign of broadening price pressures.

The year-on-year increase in the core consumer price index, which excludes volatile fresh food but includes fuel costs, compared with a median market forecast for a 2.5 per cent gain. It was faster than a 2.5 per cent rise in September.

The so-called “core core” index, which strips away both fresh food and fuel prices, was up 3.8 per cent in October from a year earlier, government data showed.

The data is likely among factors the Bank of Japan (BOJ) will scrutinise at next week’s policy meeting, when the board produces fresh quarterly growth and inflation forecasts.

The BOJ remains a global dovish outlier, having maintained ultra-loose policy even as major central banks elsewhere raised interest rates aggressively to fight rampant inflation.

While inflation has exceeded its 2 per cent inflation target for more than a year, the BOJ has pledged to keep ultra-low interest rates until the recent cost-driven price rises shift to a more durable increase driven by domestic demand. REUTERS