ID :
13834
Fri, 07/25/2008 - 21:00
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Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/13834
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Japan's consumer prices up at fastest rate in over 15 years
TOKYO, July 25 Kyodo - Japan's key consumer price index in June rose 1.9 percent from a year earlier, marking the fastest pace of increase in more than 15 years as pressure from rising energy costs was increasing, the government said Friday.
The core nationwide CPI, which excludes volatile fresh food prices, rose for the ninth consecutive month to 102.0 against the base of 100 for 2005, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said in a preliminary report.
''We are closely watching how consumers' minds will be affected,'' Economic and Fiscal Policy Minister Hiroko Ota told reporters after the data was released. She attributed the faster consumer inflation to companies passing energy and raw material cost hikes on to prices for their products.
The headline reading came in line with the average market forecast rise at 1.9 percent in a Kyodo News survey. Excluding a one-year period during which Japanese consumer prices rose under the effect of the April 1997 consumption tax hike, the latest core CPI rose at the fastest rate since December 1992 when it surged 2.0 percent.
Given record high crude oil prices, overall energy costs increased 13.7 percent year on year.
Prices of petroleum products expanded 23.9 percent, including gasoline prices that grew 24.2 percent.
Utility costs were also higher. Electricity prices were up 3.5 percent and gas prices up 3.0 percent.
Prices for nonperishable foods rose 3.5 percent against the backdrop of robust commodity markets.
Prices went up 33.2 percent for spaghetti, up 21.4 percent for instant noodles and up 18.5 percent for bread. Chocolate prices rose 22.8 percent.
With fresh food prices included, the nationwide CPI rose 2.0 percent to 102.2 for the ninth straight month of growth.
Excluding both food and energy prices, the index was up 0.1 percent to 99.4 for the first increase in three months. This price indicator is seen as similar to the core consumer price index used in the United States, with some experts saying it better reflects price trends.
Analysts express concerns that inflation without wage hikes could only damage consumer sentiment.
''Consumers have weakened their confidence and it recently became evident that consumption is actually slowing,'' economists at Lehman Brothers in Japan wrote.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura warned that consumers are feeling the pinch from rises in prices for products ''very close to their daily lives.''The government has to closely monitor the impact on consumption overall, the top government spokesman said.
The core CPI for Tokyo's 23 wards in July grew 1.6 percent from a year before to 101.4, the ministry said.
The result matched the average forecast increase and was also the fastest hike since December 1992 when the index grew 1.9 percent.
Electricity expenses rose 6.8 percent while gas prices gained 7.1 percent, with gasoline prices 28.4 percent higher.
Consumer prices in Tokyo are seen as the leading indicator of prices across Japan.
The core nationwide CPI, which excludes volatile fresh food prices, rose for the ninth consecutive month to 102.0 against the base of 100 for 2005, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said in a preliminary report.
''We are closely watching how consumers' minds will be affected,'' Economic and Fiscal Policy Minister Hiroko Ota told reporters after the data was released. She attributed the faster consumer inflation to companies passing energy and raw material cost hikes on to prices for their products.
The headline reading came in line with the average market forecast rise at 1.9 percent in a Kyodo News survey. Excluding a one-year period during which Japanese consumer prices rose under the effect of the April 1997 consumption tax hike, the latest core CPI rose at the fastest rate since December 1992 when it surged 2.0 percent.
Given record high crude oil prices, overall energy costs increased 13.7 percent year on year.
Prices of petroleum products expanded 23.9 percent, including gasoline prices that grew 24.2 percent.
Utility costs were also higher. Electricity prices were up 3.5 percent and gas prices up 3.0 percent.
Prices for nonperishable foods rose 3.5 percent against the backdrop of robust commodity markets.
Prices went up 33.2 percent for spaghetti, up 21.4 percent for instant noodles and up 18.5 percent for bread. Chocolate prices rose 22.8 percent.
With fresh food prices included, the nationwide CPI rose 2.0 percent to 102.2 for the ninth straight month of growth.
Excluding both food and energy prices, the index was up 0.1 percent to 99.4 for the first increase in three months. This price indicator is seen as similar to the core consumer price index used in the United States, with some experts saying it better reflects price trends.
Analysts express concerns that inflation without wage hikes could only damage consumer sentiment.
''Consumers have weakened their confidence and it recently became evident that consumption is actually slowing,'' economists at Lehman Brothers in Japan wrote.
Chief Cabinet Secretary Nobutaka Machimura warned that consumers are feeling the pinch from rises in prices for products ''very close to their daily lives.''The government has to closely monitor the impact on consumption overall, the top government spokesman said.
The core CPI for Tokyo's 23 wards in July grew 1.6 percent from a year before to 101.4, the ministry said.
The result matched the average forecast increase and was also the fastest hike since December 1992 when the index grew 1.9 percent.
Electricity expenses rose 6.8 percent while gas prices gained 7.1 percent, with gasoline prices 28.4 percent higher.
Consumer prices in Tokyo are seen as the leading indicator of prices across Japan.
