In a startling revelation, Nigeria’s inflation rate surged to 29.90 per cent in January 2024, according to the latest report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
This significant increase from the previous month’s 28.92 per cent underscores the mounting inflationary pressures gripping the nation’s economy.
The report highlights a notable uptick in the headline inflation rate, which rose by 0.98 percentage points compared to December 2023. Year-on-year, January 2023 saw an inflation rate of 21.82 per cent, indicating an alarming leap of 8.08 percentage points by January 2024.
Digging deeper into the findings, food inflation hit a staggering year-on-year high of 35.41 per cent in January 2024, marking an alarming 11.10 percentage point increase from the same period in 2023.
This sharp rise is attributed to significant price hikes across essential food items such as bread, cereals, potatoes, yams, oils, fats, fish, meat, fruits, as well as coffee, tea, and cocoa.
On a month-on-month basis, food inflation for January 2024 rose to 3.21 per cent, surpassing December 2023’s rate by 0.49 percentage points. This acceleration reflects the growing challenges faced by consumers in accessing affordable food amidst soaring prices.
Moreover, the core inflation rate for January 2024 surged to 23.59 per cent year-on-year, indicating a substantial increase from January 2023. This metric, excluding volatile agricultural produce and energy prices, provides insight into the underlying inflationary trends within the economy.
The urban inflation rate soared to 31.95 per cent year-on-year in January 2024, while the rural inflation rate stood at 28.10 per cent. Both urban and rural areas experienced significant increases in inflation, exacerbating the cost of living for households nationwide.
Overall, Nigeria continues to grapple with mounting inflationary pressures, severely impacting the purchasing power of consumers and exacerbating socio-economic challenges across the country.
