The data for November comes ahead of the Bank of Japan's two-day policy meeting ending on Dec. 19, when some analysts expect it to raise short-term interest rates from the current 0.25%.

The corporate goods price index (CGPI), which measures the price companies charge each other for their goods and services, rose 3.7% last month from a year earlier, BOJ data showed, faster than a median market forecast for a 3.4% increase.

The increase, which followed a 3.6% gain in October, was due to higher prices for food, nonferrous metals and plastic goods reflecting rising commodity and labour costs. The index, at 124.3, extended a record high for the third straight month.

Agricultural and fishery goods prices spiked 31% in November from year-before levels, after a 28.1% gain in October, due largely to the soaring price of rice, the data showed.

The yen-based import price index fell 1.2% in November, slower than a 2.2% drop in October, a sign the currency's rebound has not been strong enough to significantly push down the cost of importing raw material.

While the yen is off a three-decade low near 162 to the dollar hit in July, it has weakened to around 152 recently after touching a high near 141 in mid-September.

The data casts doubt on the BOJ's view that inflationary pressure from raw material imports will dissipate and ease the burden on households in a boost to consumption and the broader economy.

The BOJ ended a decade-long, radical stimulus programme in March and raised short-term interest rates to 0.25% in July on the view Japan was progressing towards sustainably achieving its 2% inflation target.

BOJ Governor Kazuo Ueda has signaled readiness to hike rates again in the near-term if the bank becomes more convinced that inflation will stay around 2% backed by solid consumption and wage growth.