Inflation & Prices
Japan’s Inflation Accelerates Further Beyond BOJ’s 2% Target
- Gains in BOJ’s key inflation gauge increase to 2.4% in July
- Faster pace complicates Kuroda’s messaging on policy
A customer picks up Japanese banknotes at a butchery stall in Hachioji, Tokyo.
Photographer: Kiyoshi Ota/BloombergThis article is for subscribers only.
Japan’s inflation accelerated further beyond the central bank’s 2% target in July, complicating Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda’s task of explaining his insistence on the continued need for ultra-low rates.
Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 2.4% in July from a year ago, with energy costs accounting for around half the gains, the internal affairs ministry reported Friday. The result matched economists’ estimates and was the strongest reading since 2008 excluding the impact of sales tax hikes.