Tokyo - Consumer prices in Japan rose at a slower rate of 2% in February from a year earlier due to plunging oil prices, the government said on Friday.
The rate dropped from the 2.2% rise in January and has slowed for the seventh consecutive month, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications said.
The core consumer price index, which excludes fresh food, stood at 102.5 in February against a base of 100 for 2010, the ministry said.