By Onome Amuge
Nigeria’s inflation rate rose for the ninth consecutive month to a new 17-year high of 21.09 percent in October, recording a 0.32 percentage points surge against 20.77 percent reported in the previous month of September 2022, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday.
The report, which measures the rate of changes in prices of goods and services, showed that the inflation figure, the highest since 2015, rose by 5.09 percent year-on-year compared to 15.99 percent posted in the corresponding period of 2021.
The sharp rise in the prices of goods and services was attributed to a disruption in the supply of goods and services following flooding across some parts of the country, sharp rise in importation expenditure due to persistent currency depreciation, and a continuous rise in cost of production across various chains.
The report further showed that the urban inflation rate jumped to 21.63 percent in the month under review against 16.52 percent recorded in the corresponding period of 2021, while the rural inflation rate hit 20.57 percent in contrast to the 15.48 percent recorded in the corresponding period of 2021.
The national statistics agency noted that the food inflation rate climbed to 23.72 percent on a year-on-year basis, a 5.39 percent increase compared to 18.34 percent recorded in October 2021. The acceleration in the year-on-year food inflation was attributed to increases in prices of bread and cereals, food products, potatoes, yams and other tubers, oils and fats.
However, the food inflation rate recorded a 0.21 percent decline on a month-on-month basis, standing at 1.23 percent in October against 1.43 percent posted in September 2022. The decline was attributed to the reduction in prices of some food items like tubers, palm oil, maize, beans, and vegetables.
Meanwhile, the ‘’All items less farm produce’’ or Core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce, rose to 17.76 percent in October 2022, up from 17.6 percent recorded in the previous month.
Notably, the highest increases were recorded in prices of gas, liquid fuel, solid fuel, and vehicle spare parts.
