Japan’s CPI Consumer Price Index inflation fell from nearly fourty-year highs in Feb, according to statistics released on Friday, because govt subsidies on usefulness prices

Inflation in the (Japan) Consumer price index which includes fresh food, increased 3.3 percent during the twelve months prior to Feb, lower from 4.3 percent in January.

Consumer Price Index

The greatest factor in the lower inflation rate was a roughly 19 percent decrease in electricity costs from the previous month

The Bank of Japan’s decision to maintain its ultra-loose policy in light of a leadership change is strengthened by Friday’s inflation figure.

Japan’s import prices were also lowered as a result of the yen’s strengthening and the dollar’s diminished impact. After the report on Friday, the yen was stable.

The Bank of Japan had been under growing pressure to tightening policy because inflation rose to a near 42-year peak in Jan.

However, the BOJ only anticipates price pressures approaching its 2 percent target level by mid-2025. And anticipates inflation to build up once more by late 2023 to mid-2024.