TOKYO, Dec 19 - Japan's consumer price index was probably unchanged in November from the same month last year, held steady by one-off factors such as a rise in rice prices, a poll showed on Friday. The poll of 24 economists produced a median forecast for nationwide core CPI of 0.0 percent change from a year earlier, after a rise of 0.1 percent in October. The October figure was the first positive figure in five-and-a-half years.
The core CPI excludes volatile fresh food prices. The CPI figure is closely watched because the central bank has vowed to keep its loose monetary policy framework in place until year-on-year changes in the index stabilise above zero. Analysts said the special factors that pushed the index into positive territory in October -- higher tobacco prices, a rise in the price of rice after a poor harvest and an increase in healthcare costs -- would fade slightly in November. "The upward push from higher rice prices and other special factors will have run its course by October," said Takumi Tsunoda, an economist at Shinkin Central Bank, which is forecasting an unchanged index. Core CPI for the Tokyo area in December is expected to fall 0.2 percent from a year ago after a drop of 0.2 percent in November. The government will announce the data on Friday, December 26 at 8:30 a.m. (2330 GMT Thursday).//