Domestic wholesale prices dropped 2.1 percent in August compared with the same month last year, down for the sixth consecutive month, the Bank of Japan said Tuesday.

Compared with the previous month, the domestic wholesale price index for August fell 0.1 percent and stood at 97.4 against the 1995 base of 100, the central bank said. The wholesale price index measures inflation on the level of corporate transactions and is considered to foreshadow trends in consumer prices.

Domestic wholesale prices of electrical machinery fell 0.2 percent from July, while those of chemical products as well as iron and steel also dropped 0.2 percent and 0.4 percent each, the BOJ said. In contrast, wholesale prices of processed food rose 0.1 percent from the previous month, the central bank said.

Meanwhile, import prices rose 1.2 percent from a month before when measured in yen terms. This represents a 3.3 percent rise compared with the same month last year, the bank said.