TOKYO, Jan. 26 (Xinhua) -- Japan's core consumer prices increased 0.9 percent in December from a year earlier, the government said in a report on Friday.

According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, the core consumer price index, excluding fresh food prices due to their volatility, increased for the 12th consecutive month, on the heels of a 0.9 percent rise logged a month earlier.

The index, however, still remained a long way below the Bank of Japan's (BOJ) 2 percent inflation target.

As for CPI for Tokyo's 23 wards, which is released a month before nationwide data and seen as a gauge of wider price moves, the index gained 0.7 percent in January from a year earlier, following a 0.8 rise logged a month earlier, the latest data set showed.

Booking a positive reading for the first time in two years, the CPI for 2017 increased 0.5 percent, the ministry also said.

The CPI is a measure estimating the average price of consumer goods and services purchased by households.