TOKYO, – Japan’s core consumer prices rose 0.5 percent year-on-year in November, the third monthly increase after two modest hikes of 0.1 percent driven partly by higher fuel prices, government data showed Friday. The advances follow 18 months of declines or stagnation during the depths of the pandemic, and Friday’s reading beat economist expectations of a 0.4 percent rise. The core consumer price index, which excludes volatile fresh food prices but includes fuel costs, was up 0.5 percent in November, after edging up 0.1 percent on-year in both October and … Continue reading Japan prices rise for third straight month