Inflation & Prices

Tokyo Inflation Slows Sharply as Subsidies Mask Ongoing Strength

  • Robust trend keeps scrutiny on BOJ policy outlook under Ueda
  • Government aid suppressing inflation by 1.1 percentage point

Friday’s inflation data reflected the impact from Prime Minister Fumio Kishida’s latest stimulus package.

Photographer: Noriko Hayashi/Bloomberg
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Inflation in Tokyo decelerated for the first time in more than a year, as ramped-up government subsidies masked a strengthening price trend that will keep scrutiny on the Bank of Japan’s policy path under the likely leadership of Kazuo Ueda.

Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 3.3% from a year earlier in the capital in February, slowing a full percentage point from the previous month and in line with economists’ forecast.