Nigeria Grapples with Soaring Inflation Rate of 24.08% – Highest in 18 Years

Nigeria’s annual inflation has surged to 24.08% in July, marking its highest level in nearly two decades. The sharp rise has been fueled by escalating prices of essential food items and increased transportation costs. Households are feeling the strain of meeting daily food needs, aggravated by the removal of fuel subsidies and the ongoing depreciation of the national currency.

The surge in inflation, a 1.29 percentage point increase from June’s 22.79%, is primarily attributed to the escalating prices of staple food items such as oil and fat, bread, cereals, fish, potatoes, yam, fruits, meat, vegetables, milk, cheese, and eggs.

Food inflation, which now stands at 26.98%, is at its highest level since September 2005. Additionally, the removal of fuel subsidies has impacted transportation costs and related services, pushing core inflation (excluding farm produce and energy) to 20.47% in July – its highest point in 19 years, up by 0.41 percentage points from June’s 20.06%.

The National Bureau of Statistics’ Consumer Price Index report for August reveals that the significant price hikes in food and non-alcoholic beverages accounted for a substantial 12.47% of the overall rise in headline inflation. Housing, water, electricity, gas, and other fuels contributed 4.03%, while clothing and footwear added 1.84%, transport 1.57%, and furnishings, household equipment, and maintenance 1.21%.

The National Bureau of Statistics disclosed, “In July 2023, the headline inflation rate climbed to 24.08%, compared to June 2023’s rate of 22.79%. This indicates a 1.29% point increase in the July 2023 headline inflation rate over June 2023’s rate.”

“In terms of year-on-year comparison, the headline inflation rate for July 2023 was 4.44% points higher than that of July 2022, which stood at 19.64%. This demonstrates a noticeable rise in July 2023’s headline inflation rate compared to the same month in the previous year.”

“Furthermore, the month-on-month basis inflation rate for July 2023 was 2.89%, an increase of 0.76% compared to June 2023’s rate of 2.13%. In essence, the general price level in July 2023 was, on average, 0.76% higher than that of June 2023.”

“The average CPI change for the twelve-month period ending in July 2023, relative to the average CPI of the preceding twelve-month period, was 21.92%. This marks a substantial increase of 5.17% compared to July 2022’s rate of 16.75%.”