Nigeria’s inflation records fifth consecutive drop to 17.01%
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Nigeria’s consumer price index (CPI), which measures inflation rate, trended downward for the fifth consecutive month to 17.01 percent year on year in August 2021, 0.37 percent below 17.38 percent recorded in August 2020, according to the CPI report for the month released on Wednesday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The Abuja based statistics cruncher showed that the headline index advanced 1.02 percent in August 2021, 0.09 percent higher, compared to 0.93 percent recorded in July 2021, while increases were also recorded in all COICOP divisions that yielded the headline index.
According to the NBS, percentage change in the average composite CPI for the twelve months period ending August 2021 over the average of the price index for the previous twelve months period was 16.60 percent, indicating 0.30 percent point from 16.30 percent recorded in July 2021.
The urban inflation rate was up 17.59 percent year-on-year in August 2021 from 18.01 percent in July 2021, while the rural inflation rate increased by 16.43 percent in August 2021 from 17.75 percent in July 2021.
On a month-on-month basis, the urban index jumped 1.06 percent in August, 0.08 percent higher than the rate recorded the previous month, while the rural index also climbed 0.99 percent in August.
The composite food index, which is a major driver of the headline index, rose by 20.30 percent in August 2021 against 21.03 percent in July 2021. The report also disclosed that the food sub-index rose by 1.06 percent in August, 0.20 percent points higher than the 0.86 percent posted in July 2021.
The surge in the food index, NBS said, was due to increases in prices of staple food items including, bread, cereals, cheese, milk, oils and fats, potatoes and other tubers, meat, coffee, tea and other food products.