On April 21, Japan’s headline inflation rate continued to beat expectations ahead of Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda’s first meeting next week.
The data showed that Japan’s core CPI excluding fresh food recorded an annual rate of 3.1% in March, unchanged from the previous month.
Measures of inflation growth excluding energy were stronger than expected. Headline data again suggested that inflation in Japan rose slightly more than expected.
Japan’s main inflation gauge has topped 3% for seven straight months, but the BOJ said those increases, driven by rising import costs, were temporary.
The BOJ expects inflation to fall below 2 percent later this year and says its ultra-loose monetary policy remains appropriate.