Japan's key consumer price index (CPI) fell 1.1 per cent in July from a year earlier, making it the 17th consecutive month of year-on-year decline, the government said Friday. The core CPI, which excludes volatile fresh food prices, stood at 99 against the base of 100 for 2005, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said. The ministry said in a separate report that average monthly spending by Japanese households in July climbed 1.1 per cent in real terms from a year earlier to 285,274 yen (3,382 dollars).
