The National Bureau of Statistics releases new figure showing that inflation rate has been declining in the last two months in Nigeria

|  By Anayo Ezugwu  |  May 29, 2017 @ 01:00 GMT  |

INFLATION rate has continued to decline in Nigeria in the last two months. Recent statistics released by the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, showed that the Consumer Price Index, CPI, which measures inflation rate dropped to 17.24 percent (year-on-year) in April while it declined by 0.02 percent in March, 2017.

The NBS said the increases were recorded in all Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose, COICOP, divisions that yield the Headline Index. It stated that the top items to have recorded the highest year on year increases across all the divisions were solid fuels, bread and cereals, meat, liquid fuels, clothing materials, other articles of clothing and clothing accessories, and Fish.

On a month-on-month basis, the headline index increased by 1.60 percent in April 2017, 0.12 percent points lower than the rate recorded in March. On a month-on-month basis, the highest rise in prices were dominated by food items including coffee, tea and cocoa, potato, yam and tubers, bread and cereals, milk cheese and eggs and meat and fish.

The Headline Index is made up of the Core Index and Farm Produce items. Processed Foods are included in both the Core and Food sub-indices; this implies that these sub-indices are not mutually exclusive. The urban index rose by 17.62 percent (year-on-year) in April from 18.27 percent recorded in March, and the Rural index increased by 16.69 percent in April from 16.47 percent in March.

On month-on-month basis, the urban index rose by 1.61 percent in April from 1.76 percent recorded in March, while the rural index rose by 1.59 percent in April from 1.69 percent in March. The corresponding twelve-month year-on-year average percentage change for the urban index increased from 18.79 percent in March to 18.98 percent in April, while the corresponding rural index also increased from 16.05 percent in March to 16.69 percent in April.

According to the NBS, the composite food index, which includes all farm produce rose by 19.30 percent in April 2017. It said on a month on month basis, the food sub index increased by 2.04 percent in April, down by 0.17 percent points from 2.21 percent recorded in March.

The NBS noted that the rise in the index was caused by increases in prices of bread, cereals, meat, fish, potatoes, yams and other tubers, coffee, tea and cocoa, milk cheese and eggs and oils and fats. “The average annual rate of change of the food sub-index for the twelve-month period ending in April 2017 over the previous twelve-month average was 17.11 percent, 0.51 percent points from the average annual rate of change recorded in March (16.60) percent.

The All Items Less Farm Produce or Core sub-index, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce eased by 14.80 percent during the month, 0.60 percent points from 15.40 percent recorded in March as all key divisions which contributes to the index increased. On a month-on-month basis, the Core sub-index increased by 1.10 percent in April, 0.22 percent points lower from 1.32 percent recorded in March.

The highest increases were recorded in solid fuel, liquid fuel, clothing materials and other articles of clothing, lubricants for personal transport equipment, audiovisual, photographic and information processing equipment, wines and spirits.”