Nigeria’s inflation increases to 18.72%

 

THE National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) today released the inflation rate for the month of January 2017.

The headline Consumer Price Index (CPI) which measures inflation increased by 18.72 percent (year-on-year) in January 2017, 0.17 percentage points higher from the rate recorded in December 2016 (18.55) percent.

The CPI numbers showed another deceleration in the month-on-month inflation rate to 1.0 percent from 1.2 percent in December 2016. For the key sub-components, Food inflation increased to 17.8 percent, from 17.4 percent in December 2016, with the pace of month-on-month increase slowing marginally by 4 basis points to 1.3 percent from December.

However, Core inflation fell to 17.9 percent year-on-year from 18.1 percent year-on-year in December, a decline of 6 basis points.

According to the NBS, increases were recorded in all the divisions which contribute to the Headline index, save for the Communication and Restaurants and Hotels which recorded the slowest pace of growth, growing at 5.1 percent and 8.4 percent year-on-year respectively. For Food index, rate of price increases in all major food group contributed to the increase seen. However, the Soft Drinks recorded the slowest pace of increase of 7.8 percent year-on-year. Energy and energy related prices remain the largest increases reflected in the Core sub-index.