Headline Inflation Rate Slides to 18.12% after 19-Month Uptrend
The Nigerian headline inflation rate halts a 19-month uptrend in April to 18.12% from 18.17% reading in March against analysts’ projections.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said in a new report that the inflation rate slides by five basis points as temperance in food inflation which dropped 23bps to 22.72% offset a 7bps increase in core inflation to 12.74%.
The report also said increases were recorded in all Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose (COICOP) divisions that yielded the headline index.
“On a month-on-month basis, the headline index increased by 0.97 percent in April. This is 0.59 percentage points higher than the rate recorded in March (1.56 percent)”, the report said.
The NBS said that the percentage change in the average composite of CPI for the 12 months period ending in April over the average CPI for the previous 12 months period was 15.04 percent. This, it said, represented a 0.48 percent increase over 14.55 percent recorded in March.
It, however, said that the rural index also rose by 0.95 per cent in April, down by 0.57 per cent, compared to the 1.52 per cent rate recorded in March.
“The corresponding twelve-month year-on-year average percentage change for the urban index is 15.63 percent in April.
“This is higher than 15.15 percent reported in March, while the corresponding rural inflation rate in April is 14.48 percent compared to 13 percent recorded in March,’’ it stated.
The NBS said that the composite food index rose by 22.72 percent in April compared to 22.95 percent in March.
It added that on a month-on-month basis, the food sub-index increased by 0.99 percent in April, down by 0.91 percent from 1.90 percent recorded in March.
It said that the rise in the food index was caused by increases in prices of coffee, tea and cocoa, bread and cereals, soft drinks, milk, cheese and eggs, vegetables, meat, oil and fats, fish and potatoes, yam, and other tubers.
The data bureau said that “All items less farm produce’’ or Core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce stood at 12.74 percent in April, up by 0.07 percent when compared with 12.67 percent recorded in March.
It added that on a month-on-month basis, the core sub-index increased by 0.99 percent in April, down by 0.07 percent when compared with 1.06 percent recorded in March.
It said that the highest increases were recorded in the prices of pharmaceutical products, vehicle spare parts, hairdressing salons, and personal grooming establishments. Other areas are garments, furniture and furnishing, medical services, shoes, and other footwear.
Others are motor cars, major household appliances whether electric or not, dental services, hospital services, non-durable household goods and fuel and lubricants for personal transport equipment.
For state profile, the NBS said that in April, “all-items’’ inflation on a year-on-year basis was highest in Kogi at 24.33 percent, Bauchi State at 22.93 percent, and Sokoto State at 20.96 percent.
Abia at 15.94 per cent, Kwara at 15.70 per cent and Katsina State at 15.58 per cent recorded the slowest rise in headline year-on-year inflation.
On a month-on-month basis, however, in April “all-items’’ inflation was highest in Kebbi at 2.24 percent, Cross River at 1.99 percent, and Jigawa at 1.78 percent.
Ebonyi at 0.12 percent recorded the slowest rise in headline inflation month-on-month with Rivers and Ogun recording price deflation or negative inflation.
For food inflation on a year-on-year basis, in April, it was highest in Kogi at 30.52 percent, Ebonyi 28.07 percent, and Sokoto State at 26.90 percent.
Abuja at 18.63 percent, Akwa Ibom at 18.51 percent, and Bauchi State at 17.64 percent recorded the slowest rise in year-on-year inflation.
On a month-on-month basis, however, April food inflation was highest in Kebbi at 2.46 percent, Ekiti State at 2.42 percent, and Kano State at 2.17 percent.
Meanwhile, Abuja at 0.05 percent recorded the slowest rise in month-on-month food inflation with Rivers and Ogun recording price deflation or negative inflation.
Likewise, the urban and rural inflation readings moderated to 18.68% year on year and 17.57% year on year respectively, in the review month from 18.76% and 17.60% apiece in March 2021.
Headline Inflation Rate Slides to 18.12% after 19-Month Uptrend
