Headline inflation surged 17.33% y/y in February 2021 from 16.47%; highest in 4 years

Charles Abuede

Recent inflation numbers published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has revealed that Nigeria’s headline inflation has climbed to 17.33 per cent year on year for the eighteenth consecutive month since Nigeria last recorded a fall in inflation numbers at 11.02 per cent in August 2019, and reaching a 4 year high since February 2017 when the consumer price index, (CPI) which measures inflation increased to 17.78 per cent. This indicates a 0.86 per cent points higher than the 16.47 per cent recorded in January 2021.

The increase according to the Abuja-based statistics office can be attributed to the rise in the food inflation where the prices of food and other items rose within the composite food index by 21.79 per cent in the month under review from 20.57 per cent as a result of rises in the prices of Bread and cereals, Potatoes, yam and other tubers, Meat, Food products, Fruits, Vegetable, Fish and Oils and fats. On the other hand, the food sub-index increased by 1.89 per cent month on month in February 2021, up by 0.06 per cent points from 1.83 per cent recorded in January 2021 and on the yearly average, the rate of change in the index was 17.25 per cent, 0.59 per cent points from the average annual rate of change recorded in January 2021 at 16.66 per cent.

Further afield on the data accessed by business a.m, price increases were recorded in prices of airline tickets, medical services, other household spending, hospital bills, transport fares by road, health products and paramedical services, the repair of furniture, spare parts of vehicles, maintenance and the repair of personal transport equipment, motor vehicles, dental services and hairdressing and other personal grooming establishments. Though, an increase was also recorded in all items not produced from the farm, which does not include volatile agricultural produce at 12.38 per cent in the review period and rose by y 0.53 per cent when compared with 11.85 per cent recorded in January 2021.

Elsewhere, the food inflation in February was recorded on an annual average in n Kogi (30.47%), Ebonyi (25.73%) and Sokoto (25.68%) states in the highest figures, while lowest in states such as Gombe (19.32%), Bauchi (18.74%) and Akwa Ibom (18.70%). However, on the monthly average, food inflation was highest in Kogi (3.34%), Ondo (3.33%) and Ebonyi (3.26%), while Benue and Niger (0.90%), Kano (0.70%) and Oyo (0.09%) recorded the slowest rise during the review period.