HIGHLIGHTS-Japan inflation hits fresh decade-high

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TOKYO, June 27 (Reuters) - Japan's annual consumer inflation accelerated to a decade-high in May on surging energy costs while job market conditions stagnated.

Industrial production rebounded in the month, but the government cut its assessment for the first time in six months, citing weakening demand in the United States and Europe.

Following are highlights of the data, based on briefings by government officials.

CPI

-- Excluding the impact of a two-percentage-point hike in the consumption tax in 1997, core CPI inflation is at the highest since early 1993.

-- Rising food and fuel prices accounted for most of the increase.

-- The CPI excluding food and energy prices fell 0.1 percent from a year earlier, due largely to a fall in car insurance premiums as a result of fewer road accidents in recent years, a government official said.

-- The so-called core-core CPI, which excludes special factors such as changes in public service fees and is compiled separately by the Cabinet Office, rose 0.77 percent in May, the highest since the data began in 2004.

JOBS DATA

-- The number of workers fell by 210,000 in May, the largest drop since a 370,000 decline in June 2004. The number of those unemployed increased by 120,000, the biggest rise since January 2003, when it rose by 130,000.

-- Job conditions appear to be getting worse among older men while the jobless rate among young people is improving, a government official said.

-- The official said the government maintained the assessment that the improvement in job conditions is stalling.

INDUSTRIAL OUTPUT

-- Industrial output rose 2.9 percent in May from the previous month, led by robust production in the automobiles and information and communication sectors.

-- Manufacturers surveyed forecast output to fall 0.9 percent in June but rise 2.2 percent in July.