The government presented conflicting consumer price indexes Tuesday that show deflation may still be around for some time.
The nationwide core consumer price index, excluding volatile perishables, rose a preliminary 0.1 percent in November from a year ago for the first rise in 25 months, the Internal Affairs and Communications Ministry said, raising hopes deflation is coming to an end after seven years.
But the ministry also unveiled a new CPI exclusive of food and energy prices that is similar to indexes used by the United States and Europe. The new CPI stood at 97.1 in November, down 0.2 percent from a year earlier.