Nigeria’s inflation rate decreased to 23.18% in February 2025, down from 24.48% in January. Year-on-year inflation was 8.52% lower than February 2024. Food inflation also declined to 23.51%. The report highlights changes in various sectors contributing to the inflation rate and includes the newly rebased Consumer Price Index (CPI).
In February 2025, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported a decrease in Nigeria’s headline inflation rate to 23.18%, down from 24.48% in January. This decline of 1.30% indicates a significant reduction of 8.52% when compared to the previous year’s rate of 31.70%. The report highlights that year-on-year inflation has decreased, despite employing a different base year from November 2009.
On a month-to-month basis, the headline inflation rose by 2.04% in February 2025, attributed to increases in various categories within the Consumer Price Index (CPI) basket. According to the report, significant contributions to this increase stemmed from sectors such as food, non-alcoholic beverages, transportation, housing, and health services. Other noted sectors included clothing, education, and personal care services, among others.
The yearly rate of food inflation declined to 23.51% in February 2025, showing a reduction of 14.41% from the previous year’s rate of 37.92%. This change was significantly influenced by the alteration of the base year. Month-on-month, food inflation saw an increase of 1.67%, with reductions noted in the average prices of staples such as yam, potatoes, and cornmeal.
Core inflation, excluding volatile items like agricultural produce and energy, was reported at 23.01% year-on-year, a decline of 2.12% from the previous year. The monthly rate for core inflation remained at 2.52% in February 2025. Specific observable trends included a farm produce rate of 1.77% and an energy rate of -0.99% during the same period.
Urban inflation was recorded at 25.15%, representing an 8.51% decline from the previous year’s 33.66%. In contrast, rural inflation stood at 19.89%, significantly lower than the prior year’s figure of 29.99%. Monthly urban inflation was documented at 2.40%, while rural inflation was 1.16% in February 2025.
When analyzing inflation among states, Edo had the highest year-on-year inflation rate at 33.59%, followed by Enugu and Sokoto, while Katsina experienced the slowest increase at 15.45%. Month-on-month inflation was notably highest in Sokoto at 11.98% and slowest in Plateau at -3.37%.
Sokoto also recorded the highest food inflation year-on-year at 38.34%, whereas Adamawa exhibited the slowest rise at 12.18%. On a month-to-month basis, Sokoto maintained the highest food inflation at 18.83%, while Ondo showed a reduction of -9.81%.
This report signifies the NBS’s recent rebasing of the CPI, with the base period now updated from 2009 to 2024. According to NBS Statistician-General Adeyemi Adeniran, this rebasing was conducted to align Nigeria’s economic indicators with the current structure and realities of the economy, incorporating emerging sectors and refining data methodologies proficiently.
The February 2025 inflation report from the NBS indicates a positive trend with a notable decrease in Nigeria’s headline and food inflation rates compared to earlier months and the previous year. This decline is attributed to various factors within the consumer market, including reduced prices of key food items. The rebasing of the CPI reflects a commitment to accurately portray the economic landscape, thus providing robust data for policy decisions moving forward.
Original Source: businessday.ng
