Japan's Producer Price Inflation Eases to 7.2%, But Consumer Prices Remain Low

Japan's wholesale inflation rate eased slightly to 7.2% in July, missing analysts' expectations of a 7.4% increase, according to official data released Thursday.

The reading was down from a revised 7.3% seen in June and is still above the Bank of Japan's target of 2%. Electricity prices were the largest contributor to the producer price index in July, adding 0.23 percentage point to the increase compared to June.

The yen-based import price index climbed 29.1% in July, compared to a 30.1% rise in June, indicating that the yen's weakness continues to push up import costs. Despite the high producer prices, consumer inflation has remained relatively low, with headline inflation coming in at 1.9% for June and core inflation at 1.6%.