Nigeria’s inflation rate rose to 33.88% in October 2024, up from 32.7% in September, marking a 1.18 percentage point increase month-on-month, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The rise was primarily driven by higher transportation costs and surging food prices, as stated in the NBS Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released on Friday.
Year-on-year, the inflation rate was 6.55 percentage points higher than the 27.33% recorded in October 2023, reflecting sustained price pressures in the economy. On a monthly basis, the inflation rate in October stood at 2.64%, slightly higher than the 2.52% reported in September.
Food inflation surged to 39.16% in October 2024 on a year-on-year basis, an increase of 7.64 percentage points compared to October 2023’s 31.52%. The NBS attributed this rise to the increased prices of essential food items such as Guinea corn, maize, yam, vegetable oil, and beverages like Milo and Lipton.
Month-on-month, food inflation reached 2.94% in October 2024, up from 2.64% in September, driven by rising costs of palm oil, fish, meat, and bread products. The report further highlighted that the average annual food inflation rate for the twelve months ending October 2024 was 38.12%, a significant increase from the 26.33% recorded during the same period in 2023.
The continued rise in inflation poses challenges for households, with higher costs of basic goods and services impacting purchasing power across the country.
