The domestic wholesale price index for June fell 0.1 percent from the previous month but rose 2 percent from a year earlier, the Bank of Japan said July 8.
Steel prices rose while gasoline, air conditioners and wood products got cheaper, the BOJ said. Export prices and import prices for June both dropped 3.2 percent from May, mainly because of the yen's rise against the dollar. The overall wholesale price index, which includes export and import prices, decreased 0.7 percent from May but rose 1.9 percent from a year earlier.