By Leika Kihara

TOKYO Japanese wholesale prices rose 5.1% in May from a year earlier, slowing for the fifth straight month due to sliding fuel and raw material costs, central bank data showed on Monday.

The rise in the corporate goods price index (CGPI), which measures the price companies charge each other for their goods and services, was slower than a median market forecast for a 5.5% gain and followed a revised 5.9% increase in April.

The slowdown in wholesale price growth heightens the chance Japan's consumer inflation will moderate towards the central bank's 2% target.

(Reporting by Leika Kihara; Editing by Kim Coghill)