Indicators

Tokyo Prices Rising Most in Two Years Keeps BOJ on Hike Path

Persistent increases in living costs have fueled public discontent in Japan.

Photographer: Soichiro Koriyama/Bloomberg

Prices in Tokyo jumped the most in two years on surging food costs, keeping the Bank of Japan on track for another rate hike in coming months.

Consumer prices excluding fresh food rose 3.6% in the capital in May from a year earlier, accelerating from 3.4% in April, the Ministry of Internal Affairs said Friday. The increase, which outpaced economists’ median forecast of a 3.5% gain, was the biggest since January 2023. Overall inflation came to 3.4%, matching a revised 3.4% in April.