Tokyo area CPI for April (national level CPI for the month follows in three weeks)
Tokyo CPI 0.2% y/y
- expected 0.2%, prior was 0.4%
Tokyo CPI excluding Fresh Food -0.1% y/y
- expected 0.1%, prior was 0.4%
Tokyo CPI excluding Food, Energy 0.2% y/y
- expected 0.5%, prior was 0.7%
That final one, excluding Food & Energy, is the closest to the US core rate of inflation measure. At 0.2% its artificially higher than it really is, boosted by the sales tax hike back in October 2019. The focus is on the response the coronavirus outbreak for now, of course, and yes this measure is for Tokto only, not the national CPI, but this dismal performance on its CPI goal will not go unnoticed at the BOJ