Japan's consumer prices slow to 2.9%

Japan's core consumer price index (CPI) rose 2.9 percent in October from a year earlier, the government said Friday.
Core CPI, which excludes volatile fresh foods, increased for the 17 straight month, but the growth rate was smaller than September's 3.0 percent expansion, chiefly due to falling prices of oil and certain home appliances, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
The core CPI also saw the smallest expansion since the government raised a sales tax in April, from the 5 percent to 8 percent.
Earlier this month, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) said that excluding the direct impact of the April consumption tax hike, the October core CPI is estimated at 0.9 percent, which is far below the the BOJ's 2 percent price goal.
The BOJ said after a policy meeting on November 19 that its monetary easing has been exerting its intended effects and showed its confidence that the country remains on track toward the price stability target. In April 2013, the BOJ launched a massive monetary easing program to end deflation that has lasted for nearly 15 years and achieve the two percent inflation target in fiscal 2015.