Japan's core consumer prices fall 0.1%

Japan's key consumer prices dropped 0.1 percent in November from a year earlier for the first decline in two months, government data showed on Friday. The core consumer price index, excluding fresh foods, stood at 99.5 against the 2010 base of 100, said the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications in a preliminary report. Energy prices including electricity and gasoline rose 3.5 percent from a year earlier, smaller than a 4.6 percent increase in October. By product, gasoline prices rose 2.6 percent, compared with a 4. 2 percent gain in October. Meanwhile, prices of televisions rose 1.6 percent from a year earlier against a 1.8 percent drop in October. The core CPI for Tokyo's 23 wards in December, which indicates nationwide price moves, declined 0.6 percent from a year earlier to 98.9.