— Japan Aug Core CPI -0.3% Y/Y; MNI Median Forecast -0.2%
— Central Tokyo Sep CPI -0.4% Y/Y; MNI Median Forecast -0.3%
— Japan Aug CPI Energy Costs +0.9% Y/Y Vs July +0.7%
— Japan Aug CPI Gasoline Prices -6.0% Y/Y Vs July -6.0%
— Japan Aug CPI TVs -7.1% Y/Y Vs July -4.2%
— Japan Aug CPI Recreational Durable Goods -10.1%; July -8.8%

TOKYO (MNI) – Japan’s core consumer prices posted a fourth straight
year-on-year drop in August, hit by depressed prices of TVs and other
consumer electronic and despite higher utility charges, data released
Friday by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed.

The core reading, which excludes perishables but includes energy,
fell 0.3% last month from a year earlier following a 0.3% dip in July.

The result was slightly worse the median forecast for a 0.2%
decline in a MNI survey.

Meanwhile, total national CPI declined 0.4% on year in August,
marking a third straight fall, after falling 0.4% in July.

However, both the core and total CPI rose from the previous month
for the first time in four months, thanks to higher accommodation costs
and air fares.

On a year-on-year basis, prices were pulled down by the same factor
that has added deflationary pressures on the economy.

Prices of consumer durable goods, led by flat-screen TVs, dropped
10.1% in August from a year earlier after an 8.8% drop in July,
pushing down the overall CPI by 0.12 percentage point.

Prices of TVs alone fell 7.1% last month as the pace of decline
accelerated from -4.2% in July and -6.1% in June.

The August CPI drop was also led by lower prices of food excluding
perishables and overseas holiday tours.

By contrast, overall energy costs in August rose 0.9% from a year
earlier, up from a 0.7% rise in July.

Gasoline prices fell 6.0% in August following a 6.0% drop in July
while the pace of increase in electricity charges accelerated to +5.5%
on year from +5.0%.

National CPI excluding food and energy, or the U.S.-style core CPI,
dropped 0.5% y/y in August following a 0.6% fall in July.

Central Tokyo core CPI fell 0.4% on the year in September after a
0.5% drop in the previous month. It came in slightly worse than the MNI
survey median forecast for a 0.3% fall.

CPI figures date to 1970 under the 2010 base year.

A recent government survey showed an uptick in public inflation
expectations.

The percentage of people forecasting higher prices in a year’s time
stood at 62.0% of the total on an unadjusted basis in August, up from
60.6% in the previous month, according to the survey by the Cabinet
Office.

tokyo@marketnews.com
** MNI Tokyo Newsroom: 81-3-6860-4821 **

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