Japan’s inflation slightly downin March

ANKARA (AA/APP): Japan’s overall annual consumer inflation eased to 3.2% in March, outpacing the Bank of Japan’s target of 2% for the 12th straight month, according to a government data released Friday.

This was the second consecutive month of decline thanks to the government’s efforts to soften the impact of higher electricity and gas costs.

Headline inflation was slightly down from 3.3% in February after hitting a 41-year high of 4.3% in January, data from the Statistics Bureau of the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry showed. Meanwhile, core inflation, which excludes fresh food, remained steady at 3.1%. On a monthly basis, the consumer prices index rose 0.3% in March.