TOKYO, Jan. 24 (Xinhua) -- Japan's consumer price index (CPI) for December 2024, excluding volatile fresh food items, reached 109.6, up 3 percent year-on-year, government data showed Friday.

This marks the first time in 16 months that the inflation rate reached the 3-percent range, last observed in August 2023 at 3.1 percent, according to data from Japan's Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications.

The rise was primarily driven by higher energy costs following the expiration of government subsidies for electricity and gas.

The overall CPI, including fresh food, rose 3.6 percent to 110.7. Among the categories, fresh food saw the largest price increase at 17.3 percent, with cabbage prices more than doubling compared to the same month last year.

The utilities sector also recorded a significant increase of 11.4 percent, the second-largest after fresh food. The government's temporary subsidies for electricity and gas, reintroduced between August and October 2023 to combat the extreme summer heat, ended, resulting in electricity prices rising by 18.7 percent and gas prices by 7.8 percent.

Non-fresh food items also climbed by 4.4 percent. Notably, rice products saw a record-breaking increase of 64.5 percent due to rising raw material costs.

For the whole 2024, the average CPI excluding fresh food rose by 2.5 percent, reaching 107.9. ■