Nigeria’s inflation soars again in May, rises by 0.26%

Nigeria’s inflation rate surged to 33.95% in May 2024, up from 33.69% in April 2024, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Saturday.

This increase of 0.26%-points marks a steady rise in the cost of living, with year-on-year inflation rates jumping by 11.54%-points from 22.41% in May 2023.

However, the report highlights that while the month-on-month headline inflation rate in May 2024 was 2.14%, it represented a slight decrease from April’s 2.29%. This suggests a slower rate of price increase compared to the previous month.

The report read: “In May 2024, the headline inflation rate increased to 33.95% relative to the April 2024 headline inflation rate which was 33.69%. Looking at the movement, the May 2024 headline inflation rate showed an increase of 0.26% points when compared to the April 2024 headline inflation rate.

“On a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate was 11.54% points higher compared to the rate recorded in May 2023, which was 22.41%. This shows that the headline inflation rate (year-on-year basis) increased in the month of May 2024 when compared to the same month in the preceding year (i.e., May 2023).

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“On the contrary, on a month-on-month basis, the headline inflation rate in May 2024 was 2.14%, which was 0.15% lower than the rate recorded in April 2024 (2.29%). This means that in the month of May 2024, the rate of increase in the average price level is less than the rate of increase in the average price level in April 2024.”

The major contributing items to headline inflation in May 2024 include Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages (contributing 17.59%), Housing, Water, and Electricity. Gas & Other Fuel (contributing 5.68%), and Clothing & Footwear (contributing 2.60%).

In May 2024, Nigeria’s food inflation rate reached 40.66% on a year-on-year basis, a significant increase from the 24.82% recorded in May 2023. It is also higher than the 40.53% recorded in April 2024.

This sharp rise in food prices has been attributed to a range of factors affecting various food categories.

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The items contributing most to this inflation include Semovita, Oatflake, Yam flour pre-packaged, Garri, Bean, etc (which are under Bread and Cereals Class), Irish Potatoes, Yam, Water Yam, etc (under Potatoes, Yam and other Tubers Class), Palm Oil, Vegetable Oil, etc (under Oil and fat), Stockfish, Mudfish, Crayfish, etc (under Fish class), Beef Head, Chicken-live, Pork Head, Bush Meat, etc (under Meat class).

However, on a month-on-month basis, food inflation in May 2024 was recorded at 2.28%, a decrease from the 2.50% recorded in April 2024.

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Core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce and energy, stood at 27.04% on a year-on-year basis in May 2024, up from 19.83% in May 2023 and 26.84% in April 2024.

The most significant contributors to core inflation included rents, passenger transport, and the cost of medical services.

Urban inflation in Nigeria stood at 36.34% on a year-on-year basis in May 2024, a significant increase from the 23.74% recorded in May 2023 and 36.00% in April 2024. This indicates a sustained rise in the cost of living in urban areas over the past year.

However, on a month-on-month basis, urban inflation was 2.35% in May 2024, down from 2.67% in April 2024.

Rural inflation in May 2024 was recorded at 31.82% on a year-on-year basis, up from 21.19% in May 2023 and 31.64% in April 2024.

This increase highlights the significant impact of rising prices on rural communities, where a larger proportion of the population is engaged in agriculture and other low-income activities.

Month-on-month, rural inflation was 1.94% in May 2024, slightly higher than the 1.92% recorded in April 2024.