Consumer prices in Japan rose 1.2% in March from the same month a year earlier, data from the country’s Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications showed. This is the maximum rate of rise in 3.5 years – since October 2018.

The rise marked the seventh consecutive month of growth. In February, inflation stood at 0.9 percent.

Consumer prices excluding fresh food (a key indicator tracked by the Bank of Japan) rose 0.8% year-on-year in March after climbing 0.6% a month earlier. This is the biggest rise since January 2020. However, the rate of increase still remains below the Japanese central bank’s 2% target.

Experts on average also predicted a 0.8% rise in core inflation, Trading Economics reported.

The strongest impact on the acceleration of inflation last month was a jump in fuel and utility prices (by 16.4%). The cost of food products in the country jumped by 3.4% – the maximum for 5 years, shoes and clothes went up by 0.7%, the cost of entertainment services rose by 1.3%.

Meanwhile, medical care became cheaper by 0.4%, transportation services – by 7%.

Consumer prices in Japan in March compared to the previous month rose by 0.4%. In February, they increased by a similar amount. This is the highest rate of increase for more than a year.