Japan's consumer prices fell for the 17th straight month in July, as deflation kept a tight grip on the economy. The country's core consumer price index, which excludes fresh food, fell 1.1 percent from a year earlier, AP quoted the government as saying Friday. The government's new high school tuition breaks weighed heavily, dragging education costs down 13 percent. A strong yen also pushed down prices of imported goods. The preliminary core CPI for Tokyo _ considered a barometer of broader price trends _ fell 1.1 percent in August, pointing toward another nationwide drop this month. Lower prices may boost individual purchasing power, but deflation is generally bad for an economy. It plagued Japan during its «Lost Decade» in the 1990s, hampering growth by depressing company profits, sparking wage cuts and causing consumers to postpone purchases. It also can increase debt burdens. The government offered some better news about the labor market. The nation's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate improved to 5.2 percent from 5.3 percent in June, according to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications. The result marked the first decline since January. The number of jobless fell 7.8 percent from a year earlier to 3.31 million, while the number of those with employment stayed flat at 62.71 million. In a separate report, the ministry said average monthly household spending rose a real 1.1 percent in July.
