Nigeria’s Inflation Rate Accelerates Further to 33.95% in May

Nigeria’s inflation accelerated by 26 basis points in May, reaching 33.95 per cent, driven primarily by rising food prices, representing an increase from April’s rate of 33.69 per cent, the latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed.

The NBS report for May 2024 highlighted that the headline inflation rate increased by 0.26 percentage points from the previous month. On a year-on-year basis, the rate was 11.54 percentage points higher than in May 2023, when it stood at 22.41 per cent.

This is even as some financial analysts have predicted that the Consumer Price Index (CPI) will continue to rise throughout the first half of 2024, with a base effect expected to stabilize price levels in the second half of the year.

Contrarily, the month-on-month headline inflation rate in May 2024 was 2.14 per cent, down 0.15 percentage points from April’s 2.29 per cent. This indicates a slower rate of price increases in May compared to April.

The average CPI for the twelve months ending in May 2024 showed a 29.06 per cent increase, up 7.86 percentage points from the 21.20 per cent recorded in May 2023 CPI.

Urban inflation in May 2024 was 36.34 per cent year-on-year, 12.61 percentage points higher than May 2023’s 23.74 per cent. On a month-on-month basis, urban inflation was 2.35%, down 0.32 percentage points from April 2024.

Rural inflation stood at 31.82 per cent year-on-year in May 2024, an increase of 10.63 percentage points from 21.19 per cent in May 2023. Month-on-month, rural inflation was 1.94 per cent, up slightly by 0.02 percentage points from April 2024.

Food inflation surged to 40.66 per cent year-on-year in May 2024, 15.84 percentage points higher than May 2023’s 24.82 per cent. This increase was driven by higher prices for items such as Semovita, oatflake, yam flour, garri, beans, various types of yams, oils, fish, and meats.

Month-on-month food inflation was 2.28 per cent in May 2024, down 0.22 percentage points from April 2024. The decrease was attributed to slower price increases for palm oil, yam, Irish potatoes, and other items.

The average annual food inflation rate for the twelve months ending in May 2024 was 34.06 per cent, up 10.41 percentage points from May 2023’s 23.65 per cent.