Japan's core inflation rate continues to fall below central bank target

April 24, data released on Friday showed that Japan's core consumer inflation slowed to below the central bank's 2% target in March for the second consecutive month as government fuel subsidies offset price pressures from energy shocks triggered by the war in Iran. Analysts expect inflation to accelerate above the Bank of Japan's target in the coming months as companies begin to pass on higher fuel costs from the Middle East conflict. The core consumer price index (CPI), which excludes the impact of volatile fresh food costs, rose 1.8% year-on-year in March, in line with the median market forecast. The previous increase was 1.6% in February. Another index that excludes the impact of fresh food and fuels (closely watched by the Bank of Japan as a better measure of demand-driven price movements) rose 2.4% year-on-year in March, after a 2.5% gain in February. (Jin Shi)