Japan’s Input Price Growth Cools on Ramped-Up Government Help

Japan’s input inflation cooled in May as ramped-up government subsidies helped cap gains in energy prices, a factor that will help contain some of the upward pressure on consumer prices for the time being.

Producer prices rose 9.1% from a year earlier, with the pace of gains slowing from a revised 9.8% the previous month. The April figure marked the fastest growth since December 1980.