Japan's inflation holds steady at 1% as subsidies support energy costs

Japan's inflation holds steady at 1% as subsidies support energy costs

Japan's core CPI held 1.4% in May—four months below the BoJ's 2% target—sustained only by government energy and fuel subsidies. Limited BoJ rate-hike scope near-term, but subsidy rolloff poses risk of forced policy reversal once underlying price pressures surface.