Tokyo Inflation Slows to 1.5 Pct in April

Tokyo, May 1 (Jiji Press)–Inflation in central Tokyo slowed to 1.5 pct year-on-year in April from 1.7 pct in the previous month, the Japanese internal affairs ministry said Friday. The pace of growth in the core consumer price index for Tokyo’s densely populated 23 special wards decelerated for the fifth consecutive month, reflecting a slowdown in food price increases and the impact of free nursery services for firstborn children under a program by the Tokyo metropolitan government. The core CPI, which excludes volatile fresh food prices, stood at 111.7 against the 2020 base of 100, rising for the 56th straight month. Prices for food, excluding fresh food, climbed 4.6 pct, after a 4.9 pct rise in March. Rice prices rose 3.6 pct, smaller than the previous month’s 8.3 pct increase. Nursery school fees fell by 100 pct, as the effects of the metropolitan government’s free nursery service initiative were fully reflected in the statistics following the start of fiscal 2026 in April, after its introduction in September last year. Energy prices dropped 4.6 pct, compared with a 7.5 pct fall in the previous month. Electricity and city gas fees fell 3.0 pct and 6.0 pct, respectively, as state subsidies were reduced. Gasoline prices plunged 9.9 pct, after falling 1.0 pct, thanks to a subsidy program introduced by the central government in March to cushion the impact of soaring crude oil prices due to the intensifying situation in the Middle East. The overall CPI, which includes fresh food, went up 1.5 pct. The index excluding fresh food and energy gained 1.9 pct. END [Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]