Inflation Rate Hits 18.17% On Rising Food Costs – NBS

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has released the report for the consumer price index/inflation for the month of March.

Naija News understands that the consumer price index measures the rate of increase in the price of goods and services in the country.

According to the agency, the consumer price index increased to 18.17 percent in March from 17.33 in February.

It added that the food inflation also increased by 1.16 percent on a year-on-year basis from 21.79 percent in February to 22.95 in March.

On a month-on-month basis, the headline index increased by 1.56 percent in March 2021.

This is 0.02 percentage points higher than the rate recorded in February 2021 (1.54 percent).

The percentage change in the average composite CPI for the 12 months period ending March 2021, over the average of the CPI for the previous 12 months period was 14.55 percent, representing a 0.50 percent point increase over 14.05 percent recorded in February 2021.

The urban inflation rate increased by 18.76 percent (year-on-year) in March 2021 from 17.92 percent recorded in February 2021, while the rural inflation rate increased by 17.60 percent in March 2021 from 16.77 percent in February 2021.

On a month-on-month basis, the urban index rose by 1.60 percent in March 2021, up by 0.02 compared to the rate recorded in February 2021, while the rural index also rose by 1.52 percent in March 2021, up by 0.02 compared to the rate that was recorded in February 2021 (1.50 percent).

The corresponding 12-month year-on-year average percentage change for the urban index is 15.15 percent in March 2021.

This is higher than 14.66 percent reported in February 2021, while the corresponding rural inflation rate in March 2021 is 13.99 percent compared to 13.48 percent recorded in February 2021.