Year-on-year, prices increased at a slower pace for: food (0.8 percent from 1.8 percent in a month earlier, namely fresh food: 1.4 percent from 8.0 percent), culture and recreation (0.4 percent from 0.9 percent) and miscellaneous (0.3 percent from 0.4 percent). Cost went up more than in a month earlier for: clothes and footwear (1.3 percent from 1.1 percent) and medical care (0.6 percent from 0.5 percent). Cost rebounded for furniture and household utensils (0.6 percent from -0.4 percent). Inflation was steady for transportation and communication (0.3 percent). Prices declined for: housing (-0.2 percent from -0.4 percent) and fuel, light and water charges (-2.1 percent from -5.8 percent).
Core consumer prices, which exclude fresh food, went up 0.2 percent on the year, compared to a 0.1 percent increase in the prior month. It was the second straight month of rise and the highest since April 2015.
On a monthly basis, consumer prices fell 0.1 percent, compared to a 0.1 percent rise in January.
In Tokyo, consumer prices fell 0.4 percent in March, after a 0.3 percent drop in February and worse than expectations of a 0.2 percent decline. Core consumer prices, which exclude fresh food, also decreased 0.4 percent from a year earlier, compared to a 0.3 percent fall in the previous month while market estimated a 0.2 percent drop.