Nigeria’s Inflation rate rises to 27.33% in October 2023

Nigeria’s headline inflation rate increased to 27.33% in October, marking an increase from the September 2023 rate of 26.72%.

The October 2023 headline inflation rate represents a 0.61 % point increase compared to the figure for the previous month of September. 

Additionally, on a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate was 6.24% points higher than the rate recorded in October 2022, which stood at 21.09%.

• This indicates a growth in the headline inflation rate (year-on-year basis) in October 2023 compared to the corresponding month of 2022.
• On a monthly basis, the rate of increase in inflation dropped by 0.37% when compared to that of September.

The month-on-month inflation stood at 1.73% which was lower when compared to the figure for September 2023 which was 2.10%.  

Food inflation

Food continues to be the major driver of inflation as food inflation rose to 1.52% on a year-on-year basis.

• This represents 7.80% points increase to the rate recorded in October 2022 (23.72%).
• The surge in year-on-year Food inflation was driven by price increases in various categories, including Bread and cereals, Oil and fat, Potatoes, Yam and other Tubers, Fish, Fruit, Meat, Vegetables, Milk, Cheese, and Eggs.
• On a month-on-month basis, the Food inflation rate in October 2023 stood at 1.91%, which is 0.54% lower than the rate recorded in September 2023 (2.45%).

This decline in month-over-month Food inflation can be attributed to a reduction in the rate of increase in the average prices of Fruits, Oil and fat, Coffee, Tea and Cocoa, Bread, and Cereals. 

States with the highest and lowest food inflation

Food inflation by state revealed that Kogi state had the highest food prices with a food inflation rate at 41. 74%), followed by Kwara (38.48%) and Lagos (37.37%).  

• On the other hand, Borno (24.41%), Kebbi (24.90%), and Jigawa (25.10%) recorded the slowest rise in food inflation on a Year-on-Year basis.

Core inflation

Core inflation, excluding the prices of volatile agricultural products and energy, reached 22.58% in October 2023 on a year-on-year basis.

• This reflects a 5.12% increase compared to the 17.46% recorded in October 2022.
• The highest increases were observed in the prices of passenger transport by road, medical services, passenger transport by air, actual and imputed rentals for housing, and pharmaceutical products, among others.

On a month-on-month basis, the Core Inflation rate for October 2023 was 1.39%, showing a decrease of 0.83% from the September 2023 rate of 2.22%. 

Urban inflation

In October 2023, the Urban inflation rate on a year-on-year basis was 29.29%, marking a significant increase of 7.66% points compared to the 21.63% recorded in October 2022.  

• On a month-on-month basis, the Urban inflation rate for October 2023 stood at 1.81%, reflecting a 0.43% decrease from September 2023 (2.24%).

Rural inflation

In October 2023, the year-on-year Rural inflation rate reached 25.58%, marking a substantial increase of 5.01% compared to the 20.57% recorded in October 2022.  

• On a month-on-month basis, the Rural inflation rate for October 2023 stood at 1.67%, indicating a decrease of 0.29% points compared to September 2023 (1.96%).