Japan inflation ticks up; spending weak

TOKYO: Japan’s inflation rate ticked up in November, posting the first gain in five months, official data showed Friday, but still-weak household spending weighed on the world’s number three economy.

The tepid figure—a 0.1 percent gain in core inflation excluding volatile fresh food prices—offered a glimmer of hope for Tokyo’s bid to conquer years of deflation, after the economy narrowly sidestepped a recession last quarter.