Before popping the champagne corks over the biggest increase in Japanese consumer prices since 1998, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe should remember that where rising costs come from is just as important as the rate of increase.
In Japan's case, the 0.9 percent jump in prices excluding fresh food from a year earlier was largely an energy story. In other words, bad inflation. Prices aren't rising because of higher wages or improving household confidence, but rather a weak yen coupled with Japan's growing reliance on overseas energy.
Source: Bloomberg
