Nigeria’s headline inflation rate eased marginally to 15.39 per cent in August 2026, down from 15.43 per cent recorded in July, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The NBS disclosed this in its Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released on Tuesday, noting that the latest figure represents a 0.04 percentage-point decline from the previous month.
The statistics agency also reported a sharper moderation in month-on-month inflation, which fell to 0.71 per cent in August, compared with 1.57 per cent in July.
This represents a decline of 0.86 percentage points from the previous month, indicating that the average price level increased at a slower rate in August than in July.
The NBS attributed the month-on-month moderation to changes in the prices of various goods and services during the period.
Food inflation also recorded a decline, falling to 19.57 per cent year-on-year in August 2026, compared with 25.30 per cent recorded in August 2025.
On a month-on-month basis, food inflation dropped significantly to 1.02 per cent in August, from 5.56 per cent in July, representing a 4.55 percentage-point decline.
According to the NBS, the development indicates that the average prices of food items increased at a slower rate during the month under review.
The bureau attributed the moderation largely to changes in the average prices of several food commodities, 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.
However, the pace of food price increases varied considerably across states.
Adamawa recorded the highest year-on-year food inflation rate at 38.85 per cent, followed by Zamfara at 37.96 per cent and Bayelsa at 36.20 per cent.
Conversely, Borno recorded the lowest year-on-year food inflation rate at -4.04 per cent, followed by Jigawa at -0.23 per cent and Kebbi at 3.47 per cent.
On a month-on-month basis, Katsina recorded the highest food inflation rate at 9.48 per cent, followed by Rivers at 8.86 per cent and Osun at 8.32 per cent.
The lowest month-on-month food inflation rates were recorded in Taraba at -12.42 per cent, Borno at -12.15 per cent and Bauchi at -8.88 per cent.
The latest figures indicate a modest easing in overall inflationary pressure and a more pronounced slowdown in the pace of monthly food-price increases.
However, the NBS data also show that significant differences persist in food-price movements across states, underscoring the uneven inflationary pressures facing households nationwide.
Leave feedback about this