Tokyo consumers saw a steeper rise in prices for a third straight month in January led by a record jump in the cost of rice.

The internal affairs ministry says the core consumer price index for Tokyo's 23 wards rose by a preliminary 2.5 percent from a year earlier. That's up 0.1 percentage point from December.

The index doesn't include fresh food prices because those fluctuate based on the weather.

CPI in Tokyo has been above the Bank of Japan's 2 percent inflation target for three months.

Rice was a standout. Prices for the widely-consumed staple surged by 70.7 percent. That's the biggest increase since the government started keeping comparable data back in 1971. Inflation in rice prices has been climbing to new record levels for four months straight.

Chocolate was another big gainer. It climbed by 30.2 percent. Coffee beans rose 19 percent.

Meanwhile, fresh food prices rose 23.8 percent. Prices for cabbage tripled and for Chinese cabbage they doubled.

Tokyo CPI is considered a leading indicator of nationwide inflation. That figure will be released in three weeks.