Japan's core inflation in October rose at its sharpest rate since July, in line with market estimates on Friday, supporting the case for interest rate hikes by the Bank of Japan.

Core inflation, which strips out prices of fresh food, came in at 3% as expected by economists polled by Reuters.

The headline inflation rate rose to 3%, marking the the 43rd month in a row that it has run above the BOJ's 2% target.

The so-called "core-core" inflation rate, which strips out prices of fresh food and energy, crept up to at 3.1%, compared to 3% in September.

Rice inflation continued to ease for a fifth month in a row, dipping to 40.2% from 49.2% in the month before.

Japan's Nikkei 225 was trading 1.58% lower, while the yen strengthened 0.1% to trade at 157.5 against the dollar. Japan

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