Tokyo's core consumer prices rose 2.7 percent in September from a year earlier, above forecasts and back above the Bank of Japan's 2 percent target.
Core consumer prices in Tokyo rose 2.7 percent in September from a year earlier, government data released on Friday showed. The median forecast had been 2.4 percent, and the August reading was 1.8 percent.
The core index includes fuel and excludes fresh food. It stood above the Bank of Japan's 2 percent target for the first time since January and was the fastest annual pace since a 2.8 percent rise in November. An index excluding both fresh food and fuel rose 3.0 percent, after 2.0 percent in August, the fastest such gain since August 2025.
Service prices rose 2.3 percent, up from 1.4 percent in August, a sign that firms were passing on labour costs in a tight job market. Tokyo figures are an early read on national inflation.
The Bank of Japan raised its policy rate to a 31-year high last month. Its governor has said the bank is in a phase focused on keeping underlying inflation from overshooting the target. Friday's data will feed into the bank's next quarterly projections.
No new rate decision was announced with the Tokyo release. Markets are watching whether the September acceleration is repeated in the national CPI before the next policy meeting.