TOKYO, July 24 (Xinhua) -- Japan's core consumer prices increased 1.6 percent in June from a year earlier, picking up pace from May, as elevated raw material costs kept pushing up food prices, government data showed Friday.
The rise in the nationwide consumer price index (CPI), excluding volatile fresh food costs, followed a 1.4 percent gain in May and remained below 2 percent for the fifth consecutive month, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.
Core-core CPI, which strips away both energy and fresh food to reflect underlying price trends, climbed 1.7 percent in the reporting month.
Food prices excluding fresh items were up 3.1 percent, easing from a 3.5-percent increase in May.
Energy costs, meanwhile, edged down 0.1 percent year on year in June, a smaller decline than May's 2.5-percent drop. Within the category, gasoline prices declined 0.7 percent, and electricity bills fell 1.7 percent. ■
