Japan CPI picks up in March; Core inflation remains below BOJ target in World Economy News 25/04/2026 Japanese consumer price index inflation rose more than expected in March, recovering from a four-year low on higher energy costs, although core inflation still remained below the Bank of Japan’s annual target. rose to 1.5% year-on-year in March from 1.3% in the prior month, recovering from its lowest level in nearly four years, government figures showed on Friday. , which excludes volatile fresh food costs, rose 1.8% from 1.6%, also beating expectations of 1.7%. But the figure remained below the BOJ’s 2% annual target for a second consecutive month. Get more insights on the impact of the Iran war on the Japanese economy by subscribing to InvestingPro A core reading that excludes both fresh food and fuel costs rose 2.4% in March from 2.5% in the prior month. The reading is also used as a key gauge of underlying inflation by the BOJ, and showed price pressures remaining sticky. March’s inflation rise was spurred chiefly by higher fuel and transportation costs, as oil and gas prices rose due to supply disruptions stemming from the conflict in the Middle East. But the impact of higher energy costs, especially fuel and utilities, was largely numbed by continued measures from Tokyo to limit cost of living pressures. Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi had rolled out a host of consumer subsidies since taking office in late-2025. Still, Friday’s reading showed some pick-up in inflation due to the Middle East war. Shipping disruptions in the Middle East are also expected to spill over into other sectors. Friday’s data comes just days before a , with the central bank widely expected to leave interest rates unchanged next week. But recent reports indicated that the BOJ could signal a willingness to hike rates further in the coming months in the face of an inflationary shock from the Middle East conflict. “While core price pressures appear to be rather firm, we suspect the BoJ will stand pat at its meeting next Tuesday,” Capital Economics analysts said in a note. “We suspect the Board will probably send some hawkish signals, by lifting its forecasts for both headline and core inflation. We also think it will reiterate the risks from rising inflation expectations,” Capital Economics analysts said, noting that a June rate hike was possible. The BOJ, along with a host of major global central banks, had warned of higher energy-driven inflation in the coming months, especially if a prolonged conflict causes extended disruptions in shipping and energy markets. Japan is highly dependent on energy imports from the Middle East, and was seen releasing fuel from its strategic reserve in March and April to numb the impact of the war. Source: Investing.com 2026-04-25 hellenicshippingnews... window.___gcfg = {lang: 'en-US'}; (function(w, d, s) { function go(){ var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], load = function(url, id) { if (d.getElementById(id)) {return;} js = d.createElement(s); js.src = url; js.id = id; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs); }; load('//connect.facebook.net/en/all.js#xfbml=1', 'fbjssdk'); load('https://apis.google.com/js/plusone.js', 'gplus1js'); load('//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js', 'tweetjs'); } if (w.addEventListener) { w.addEventListener("load", go, false); } else if (w.attachEvent) { w.attachEvent("onload",go); } }(window, document, 'script')); tweet Share