People wearing face masks to help curb the spread of the coronavirus walk at the Ginza shopping district on Tokyo on Nov. 8, 2021. (AP Photo/Koji Sasahara)

       TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Wholesale prices in Japan surged 8.0 percent in October from a year earlier, the sharpest gain in four decades, on higher crude oil prices and a weaker yen that inflated import costs, the Bank of Japan said Thursday.

       The prices of goods traded between companies marked the eighth straight monthly gain. The latest result is the largest increase since January 1981 when an 8.1 percent rise was recorded.

       Inflationary pressure has been building in Japan but not as fast as in other advanced economies like the United States, bolstering the case for the BOJ to maintain its monetary easing to attain its elusive 2 percent inflation target.

       Japanese companies have been reluctant to pass on higher costs to consumers for fear of hurting demand, keeping the rise in core consumer prices, a key measure of inflation, only modest.

       Higher costs, if not passed on to consumers, would squeeze corporate profits at a time when the economic recovery from a slump triggered by the coronavirus pandemic remains fragile.

       Prices of petroleum and coal products jumped 44.5 percent, reflecting higher commodity prices.

       Japanese consumers are already feeling the pinch as gasoline prices have recently hit a seven-year high while kerosene prices have risen to levels unseen over the past 13 years.

       The reopening of economies after lockdowns and other anti-coronavirus measures has boosted demand for energy and raw materials such as wood and steel.

       Lumber and wood prices soared 57.0 percent while iron and steel prices gained 21.8 percent. Those for nonferrous metals jumped 31.4 percent, the BOJ data showed.

       Electricity, gas and water bills rose 10.9 percent. Electricity prices normally track higher oil prices with a delay.

       Import prices surged 38.0 percent, also the sharpest gain since January 1981 while export prices gained 13.7 percent. Both figures are in yen terms.

       Font Size S M L Print Timeline 0