In a concerning economic update, Nigeria witnessed a substantial surge in its headline inflation rate, reaching 28.20% in November 2023.
This figure marked a noticeable uptick from the preceding month’s rate of 27.33%, as revealed by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its Consumer Price Index report published on Friday.
The NBS highlighted that the November 2023 headline inflation rate displayed a significant increase of 0.87% points compared to October 2023.
Examining the year-on-year basis, the inflation rate was a staggering 6.73% points higher than that recorded in November 2022, which stood at 21.47%.
This shift underscored a palpable escalation in the inflationary trend, indicating a challenging economic landscape.
“This reveals that the headline inflation rate, on a year-on-year basis, witnessed a noteworthy surge in November 2023 when compared to the same month in the preceding year (i.e., November 2022),” stated the NBS.
Delving deeper into the data, the month-on-month analysis for November 2023 unveiled a 2.09% headline inflation rate, surpassing the October 2023 rate by 0.35%.
This indicated that the rate of increase in the average price level in November outpaced that of October, posing additional concerns for economic stability, as articulated by the NBS.
The report also shed light on the food inflation rate, which reached 32.84% on a year-on-year basis in November 2023. This figure was notably higher by 8.72% points compared to the rate recorded in November 2022, emphasizing the intensified pressures on the food market.
Attributing the rise in food inflation to various factors, the NBS identified increases in the prices of Bread and cereals, Oil and fat, Potatoes, Yam and other Tubers, Fish, Fruit, Meat, Vegetables, and Coffee, Tea, and Cocoa.
The month-on-month analysis of food inflation for November 2023 revealed a rate of 2.42%, indicating a 0.51% increase from the rate recorded in October 2023 (1.91%).
“The surge in food inflation on a month-on-month basis can be attributed to a rise in the rate of increase in the average prices of Bread and Cereals, Oil and fat, Meat, Coffee, Tea, and Cocoa, Potatoes, Yam and other Tubers,” explained the NBS.
Looking at the broader picture, the average annual rate of food inflation for the twelve months ending November 2023 over the previous twelve-month average was 27.09%.
This represented a substantial 6.68% points increase from the average annual rate of change recorded in November 2022, which stood at 20.41%.
As Nigeria grapples with this alarming inflationary surge, policymakers and stakeholders face the daunting task of implementing strategies to stabilize the economy and mitigate the adverse effects on the general population.
The coming months will be crucial in determining the effectiveness of these measures and their impact on the nation’s economic well-being.
