The Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures the average change over time in the prices of goods and services consumed by people for day-to-day living, commonly known as Inflation, has continued to rise in Nigeria, with the latest report by the National Bureau of Statistics showing that in June 2023, it rose to 22.79% relative to May 2023 headline inflation rate which was 22.41%.
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A review of the movement shows that the June 2023 Headline inflation rate showed an increase of 0.38% points when compared to May 2023 headline inflation rate.
On a year-on-year basis, the Headline inflation rate was 4.19% points higher compared to the rate recorded in June 2022, which was 18.60%. This shows that the Headline inflation rate (year-on-year basis) increased in June 2023 when compared to the same month in the pre-ceding year (i.e., June 2022).
The YoY contributions of items on the divisional level to the increase in the Headline index are as follows;
- Food & Non-Alcoholic Beverages: 11.81%
- Housing Water, Electricity, Gas & Other Fuel: 3.81%
- Clothing & Footwear: 1.74%
- Transport: 1.48%
- Furnishings & Household Equipment & Maintenance: 1.15%
- Education: 0.90%
- Health: 0.68%
- Miscellaneous goods & Services: 0.38%
- Restaurant & Hotels: 0.28%
- Alcoholic Beverage, Tobacco & Kola: 0.25%
- Recreation & Culture: 0.16%
- Communication: 0.15%
With the rising food prices, President Bola Tinubu had earlier in the month declared a state of emergency on food security in Nigeria.
The President directed that all matters pertaining to food and water availability and affordability, as essential livelihood items, be included within the purview of the National Security Council.
On a month-on-month basis, the Headline inflation rate in June 2023 was 2.13%, this was 0.19% points higher than the rate recorded in May 2023 (1.94%). This means that in June 2023, on average, the general price level was 0.19% higher relative to May 2023.
On a year-on-year basis, the Urban inflation rate in June 2023 was 24.33%, this was 5.23% points higher compared to the 19.09% recorded in June 2022. On a month-on-month basis, the Urban inflation rate was 2.31% in June 2023, which was 0.21% points higher compared to May 2023 (2.09%). The corresponding twelve month average for the Urban inflation rate was 22.38% in June 2023. This was 5.30% points higher compared to the 17.09% reported in June 2022.
The Rural inflation rate in June 2023 was 21.37% on a year-on-year basis; this was 3.25% points higher compared to the 18.13% recorded in June 2022. On a month-on-month basis, the Rural inflation rate in June 2023 was 1.96%, up by 0.16% points compared to May 2023 (1.80%). The corresponding twelve months average for the Rural inflation rate in June 2023 was 20.76%. This was 4.75% points higher compared to the 16.02% recorded in June 2022.
The National Bureau of Statics constructs the CPI by combining economic theory, sampling, and other statistical techniques using data from other surveys to produce a weighted measure of average price changes in the Nigerian economy.
Key in the construction of the price index is the selection of the market basket of goods and services. Every month, 10,534 informants spread across the country provide price data for the computation of the CPI. The market items currently comprise 740 goods and services regularly priced
Nnamdi Maduakor is a Writer, Investor and Entrepreneur