Japan Wholesale Inflation Surges To Record 9.7% In 2022

Wholesale prices in Japan jumped a record 9.7% in 2022 from a year ago after December became another month of double-digit growth and higher import costs kept up inflationary pressures and squeezed corporate profits, the Bank of Japan (BOJ) said, Kyodo News reported.

Photo Insert: Cars are among Japan's top exports.

The annual gain in wholesale prices was the biggest since comparable data became available in 1981 and twice as fast as in 2021 when a 4.6% increase was reported. In December alone, the price of goods traded between companies surged 10.2%, topping 10% for the second time in 2022 and marking the second-largest gain on record.

Japan saw the corporate goods price index rise year over year for the 22nd straight month, prompting companies to pass on higher costs to consumers to remain profitable.

The country's consumer prices, which are affected by wholesale prices, have also been climbing, albeit at a much slower pace, and have remained above the BOJ's 2% target.

The yen's sharp depreciation against the US dollar has added to the woes of resource-scarce Japan by inflating the cost of energy imports as well as those of raw materials and food items.

Import prices gained 39.1% over the year in 2022, while export prices rose 16.2% in yen terms, Mainichi Shimbun also reported.

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