Japanese consumer prices excluding energy and fresh food rose for the first time since 1998 in March in a sign that Japan could be close to shaking off 10 years of deflation.

The 0.1 per cent year-on-year increase helped push up the headline core rate of consumer price inflation, which includes energy and food, to 1.2 per cent – the highest in 10 years, and a clearer indication of how consumers perceive inflation.