Tokyo consumer prices up 3.2% in May as food costs jump

Overall prices in the Japanese capital remain high as people continue to pay more for food and some services.

Tokyo's consumer price index is released ahead of figures for all of Japan. It is considered to be a leading indicator of inflation nationwide.

The internal affairs ministry says the index for Tokyo's 23 wards in May rose 3.2 percent from a year earlier. The figure excludes prices of fresh food as these fluctuate widely according to the weather.

The index was down 0.3 points from April. It is first time the figure has slowed in 2 months.

Prices of food, excluding fresh items, soared almost 9 percent from a year earlier. They continue to rise at the fastest pace since June 1976.

Prices of eggs jumped 31.1 percent, cooking oil went up 24 percent, and hamburger prices at restaurants rose 17 percent.

Toilet paper saw an increase of 15.7 percent while taxi fares soared 14.4 percent. Charges at hotels rose 11.5 percent on the back of a recovery in travel demand.