The National Bureau of Statistics’ latest CPI report shows that Nigeria’s inflation rate climbed to 32.70% in September 2024, after moderate decreases over the prior two months, July and August.
This marks a modest increase of 0.55% from the August figure of 32.15%, underscoring ongoing inflationary pressures in the economy.
The year-on-year comparison also reveals a significant rise of 5.98 percentage points from the 26.72% recorded in September 2023.
The report read, “In September 2024, the Headline inflation rate was 32.70% relative to the August 2024 headline inflation rate of 32.15%. Looking at the movement, the September 2024 Headline inflation rate showed an increase of 0.55% compared to the August 2024 Headline inflation rate.
“On a year-on-year basis, the Headline inflation rate was 5.98% points higher compared to the rate recorded in September 2023 (26.72%). This shows that the Headline inflation rate (year-onyear basis) increased in September 2024 when compared to the year-on yearin the preceding year (i.e., September 2023).
“Furthermore, on a month-on-month basis, the Headline inflation rate in September 2024 was 2.52%, which was 0.30% higher than the rate recorded in August 2024 (2.22%). This means that in September 2024, the rate of increase in the average price level is higher than the rate of increase in the average price level in August 2024.”
Food prices remain a major contributor to this inflationary trend, with the food inflation rate rising to 37.77% in September 2024, a notable jump from 30.64% in the same period last year.
Key staples such as rice, maize, beans, and yams have driven this increase. The month-on-month food inflation rate also edged up to 2.64% in September, compared to 2.37% in August.