April 3, 2016 - 1:31 PM EDT
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Japan firms slash inflation forecasts amid lower oil prices

Japanese companies expect consumer prices to be 0.8 percent higher in one year's time, the Bank of Japan said Monday, down from a 1.0 percent rise predicted for the year ahead in December.

The forecasts, which came as crude oil prices continued to decline, remain far from the central bank's 2 percent inflation target.

The survey also showed companies project an annual inflation rate of 1.1 percent in three years' time, down from 1.3 percent in December, and 1.2 percent in five years' time, also lower than the previous 1.4 percent.

Companies in both manufacturing and nonmanufacturing sectors adopted weaker inflation expectations in the next year, regardless of their size. The forecast was part of the quarterly Tankan business sentiment survey.

Japan's
core consumer prices were flat in February from a year earlier for the second straight month amid falling energy-related prices, according to government data released last month.

Some 11,000 companies of all sizes and industries were polled in the BOJ's Tankan survey conducted between Feb. 25 and March 31. It showed Friday that confidence among companies deteriorated from three months earlier.

==Kyodo

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Source: Equities.com News (April 3, 2016 - 1:31 PM EDT)

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