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Japan tax hike boosts inflation

AFP, Tokyo
Inflation hit a three-decade high and unemployment dipped further in Japan, data showed Friday, as the government's bid to jumpstart the economy takes hold, but analysts warned it was too early for celebrations.
Japanese consumer inflation, stripping out volatile fresh food prices, rose 3.4 percent year-on-year in May, the fastest pace in 32 years, according to data from the internal affairs ministry.
The rise, which matched market expectations, was largely driven by a consumption tax hike in April that took the rate from 5.0 percent to 8.0 percent.
Other data from the ministry showed household spending plunged 8.0 percent in May on-year after a pre-rise shopping spree.
The tax rise was seen as crucial for shrinking Japan's mammoth national debt, proportionately the worst among wealthy nations. However there have been fears it will derail a budding economic recovery by taking a bite out of consumer spending.
Separate data from the ministry of economy, trade and industry seemed to bear that out, showing retail sales edged
down 0.4 percent in May following a 4.3 percent fall in April.
But economists say the downturn in consumption in the aftermath of the tax rise was largely a simple displacement.
Consumers had gone on a spending spree ahead of the first sales tax jump in 17 years, snapping up everything from big-ticket items such as cars and refrigerators to everyday goods like toilet rolls and rice.
Takeshi Minami, economist at Norinchukin Research Institute, told AFP that "the belief is that the drop will be temporary and that labour shortages in some sectors will continue".
Other official data showed Japan's jobless rate edged down to 3.5 percent in May, the lowest level in nearly 17 years. The jobs-to-applicants ratio stood at 1.09, the highest in more than two decades, meaning there were 109 job offers to every 100 job seekers.
The improved ratio and unemployment figures will add pressure on firms to raise wages to attract workers, said Junichi Makino, economist at SMBC Nikko Securities.
"That's good for households, and will also help add to inflation," as companies have to raise prices to account for higher wages, he said.