Higher fuel prices drove up Tokyo’s cost of living at the fastest pace in 16 months, although the increases were still tiny compared to those confronting consumers in other economies where central banks are pulling back pandemic-era stimulus. Prices in the capital, excluding those for fresh food, increased 0.3% in November from a year earlier, the ministry of internal affairs reported Friday. The result matched the median estimate from economists. Overall gains continued to be limited by plunging mobile phone fees, even as gas prices surged 28%. Japanese inflation, long a global laggard, is slowly but steadily ... (full story)