Inflation eases further to 15.39% as food prices cool

Nigeria’s headline inflation rate continued its gradual descent in August 2026, slipping to 15.39 per cent from 15.43 per cent in July, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday.

The marginal 0.04 percentage-point decline marks the third consecutive month of moderation and represents a sharp drop from the 23.14 per cent recorded in August 2025. The CPI itself rose to 146.3 points from 145.3 points in July, showing that prices continued to climb, though at a slower pace.

On a month-on-month basis, headline inflation slowed significantly to 0.71 per cent in August, down from 1.57 per cent in July. The NBS noted that this indicated the average price level rose more slowly than in the previous month.

Food inflation, the dominant driver of overall price pressures, eased to 19.57 per cent year-on-year from 25.30 per cent in August 2025 and 20.31 per cent in July 2026. The monthly food inflation rate fell sharply to 1.02 per cent from 5.56 per cent in July, a decline of 4.55 percentage points. The NBS attributed the slowdown to moderated prices of key staples including palm oil, carrots, pepper, onions, cassava flour, beef, yam flour, water yam, melon (egusi), fresh ginger, fresh fish, Irish potatoes, wheat grain, frozen chicken and turkey meat.

Core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural produce and energy prices, also moderated to 13.29 per cent year-on-year from 14.97 per cent in July and 22.93 per cent a year earlier. On a monthly basis, core inflation turned negative at –0.06 per cent, compared with 0.15 per cent in July.

Urban inflation stood at 15.88 per cent year-on-year, with the monthly rate dropping sharply to 0.28 per cent from 1.90 per cent in July. Rural inflation was lower at 14.23 per cent year-on-year but rose on a monthly basis to 1.79 per cent from 0.78 per cent. The 12-month average headline inflation rate for the period ending August 2026 was 16.30 per cent, down from 28.32 per cent a year earlier.

Food and non-alcoholic beverages remained the largest contributor to year-on-year headline inflation at 6.16 percentage points, followed by restaurants and accommodation services (1.99 points) and transport (1.64 points). The smallest contributions came from recreation, sport and culture (0.05 points), alcoholic beverages, tobacco and narcotics (0.06 points), and insurance and financial services (0.07 points).

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State-level variations remained pronounced. Food inflation was highest in Adamawa (38.85 per cent), Zamfara (37.96 per cent) and Bayelsa (36.20 per cent), while Borno recorded a negative rate of –4.04 per cent, followed by Jigawa (–0.23 per cent) and Kebbi (3.47 per cent).

The continued easing reflects broader price moderation across several categories, including transport, restaurants and hotels, and clothing, though housing and utilities saw some upward pressure. Analysts note that the relative strength of the naira has provided some support to the disinflation trend.