Africa (Commonwealth Union) _Nigeria’s annual inflation rate surged to 29.90% in January from 28.92% in December 2023, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Thursday.
In January 2024, the headline inflation rate saw a 0.98% increase compared to December 2023. On a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate was 8.08% higher than in January 2023, which stood at 21.82%. This data highlights the ongoing trend of inflationary pressures, indicating the impact of various economic factors on overall price levels and consumer purchasing power. Food inflation in January 2024 rose to 35.41% year-on-year, marking an 11.10% increase from January 2023. This uptick in food inflation was attributed to higher prices of bread and cereals, potatoes, yam and other tubers, oil and fat, fish, meat, fruit, coffee, tea, and cocoa. On a month-on-month basis, the food inflation rate in January 2024 was 3.21%, up by 0.49% from December 2023. This increase was driven by rising prices of potatoes, yam & other tubers, bread and cereals, fish, meat, tobacco, and vegetables.
The annual average food inflation rate for the twelve months ending January 2024 stood at 28.91%, marking a significant increase of 7.38% from January 2023’s average annual rate of change, which was 21.53%. This notable uptick underscores the ongoing challenges and volatility within the food market, highlighting the impact of various factors such as supply chain disruptions, economic conditions, and global trends on food prices. The NBS report also highlighted the contributions of various items to the increase in the headline index, including food & non-alcoholic beverages, housing water, electricity, gas & other fuel, clothing & footwear, transport, furnishings & household equipment & maintenance, education, health, miscellaneous goods & services, restaurant & hotels, alcoholic beverage, tobacco & kola, recreation & culture, and communication.
The report emphasizes the challenges stemming from forex scarcity, increased demand for dollars, unremitted forex backlogs by the Central Bank of Nigeria, and the resultant impact on the depreciation of the naira and inflationary pressures across various sectors of the economy. These factors collectively contribute to the complex economic landscape, underscoring the need for strategic interventions and policy measures to address currency fluctuations and mitigate inflationary risks.
