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Nigeria’s headline inflation, which tracks prices of food, energy and other commodities, has jumped for a record 11th time, surging from 27.33 per cent in October 2023 to 28.20 per cent in November, according to the Consumer Price Index released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday.
Prime Business Africa reports that food prices continue to be a major cost component for many Nigerians, driven by the rising price of staples like bread and yam.
Overall, November’s food inflation figure hit 32.84 per cent in a development that underscores a worsening cost of living crisis in the country and further pressures the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to convene a monetary policy meeting.
Only on Thursday, the CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso said, “Inflation pressures may persist in the short-term but are expected to decline in 2024”.
The latest figure indicates that headline inflation spiked by 0.87 percentage points in the month to a new record high in almost two decades. Nigeria’s inflation rate is now poised to close 2023 at about 30 per cent, aligning with recent predictions by KPMG and Stears Business.
According to the NBS, “In November 2023, the headline inflation rate increased to 28.20 per cent relative to October 2023 headline inflation rate which was 27.33 per cent.
“Looking at the movement, the November 2023 headline inflation rate showed an increase of 0.87 per cent points when compared to the October 2023 headline inflation rate.
“On a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate was 6.73 per cent points higher compared to the rate recorded in November 2022, which was 21.47 per cent. This shows that the headline inflation rate (year-on-year basis) increased in November 2023 when compared to the same month in the preceding year (i.e., November 2022).”
On a month-month basis, headline inflation in November 2023 was 2.09 per cent. Which was 0.35 percentage points higher than what was recorded in October (1.73 per cent), defeating a recent claim by the Central Bank of Nigeria that inflation is slowing down m-o-m.
