Wholesale prices in March fell 0.4 percent compared with a year ago as the global spread of COVID-19 weighed on a wide range of economic activities, the Bank of Japan said Friday.

Prices for goods traded by companies fell for the first time in five months as a recent drop in crude oil prices impacted Japan after climbing 0.8 percent in February.

By item, oil and coal products plunged 10.3 percent, reflecting the price war between Russia and Saudi Arabia in March and plummeting demand caused by the worldwide spread of the coronavirus.