Higher fuel prices drove up Tokyo’s cost of living at the fastest pace in 16 months, although the increases were still tiny compared to those confronting consumers in other economies where central banks are pulling back pandemic-era stimulus.
Consumer prices, excluding those for fresh food, in Tokyo's densely populated 23 wards, seen as a leading indicator of nationwide prices, have increased 0.3% in November from a year earlier, the internal affairs ministry reported Friday. The result matched the median estimate from economists.
Overall gains continued to be limited by plunging mobile phone fees, even as energy prices surged 14%, the most since 1981.