©Reuters. File photo: A woman looks at products at a store in Tokyo, March 24, 2023.Reuters/Androniki Christodoulou/File photo
Written by Leika Kihara
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan’s wholesale inflation rate fell below 1% for the first time in more than two-and-a-half years, data showed on Monday, fading signs of cost pressures that had been pushing up prices of a wide range of goods. It was starting.
The Corporate Goods Price Index (CGPI), which measures the prices companies charge each other for goods and services, rose 0.8% year-on-year in October, roughly matching market expectations for a 0.9% rise, but 2.2%. % has slowed down significantly. % increase in September.
Wholesale inflation slowed for the 10th consecutive month, with year-on-year growth falling below 1% for the first time since February 2021, data showed.
The data showed the economic slowdown was due to lower prices for wood, chemicals and steel products, highlighting the impact of falling global commodity costs.
A spike in wholesale inflation is prompting many Japanese companies to pass on rising costs to household budgets, a trend that prompted the Bank of Japan to revise its inflation forecast upward in its quarterly forecast released in October.
However, the Bank of Japan said that to consider ending ultra-low interest rates, the recent cost-push inflation would need to be replaced by higher prices with higher wages driven by stronger domestic demand.
