Nigeria Inflation Inches Up to 15.93% in May

Nigeria's headline inflation continued its upward trend, reaching 15.93% in May, an increase from the 15.69% recorded in April. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported this rise on Monday, indicating persistent price pressures across the economy.

Despite the overall annual increase, the month-on-month inflation rate showed a slowdown. In May, it eased to 1.75%, a noticeable decrease from the 2.13% observed in April. This suggests that while prices are still climbing, the rate at which they are increasing has moderated compared to the previous month.

Food inflation, a significant component of the overall index, saw a year-on-year decrease, standing at 16.96% in May compared to 24.55% in May of the previous year. Month-on-month, food inflation also moderated to 2.98% from 3.63% in April. However, core inflation, which excludes volatile items like agricultural produce and energy, accelerated on a month-on-month basis to 1.94% in May, up from 1.03% in April, signaling renewed pressure from non-food items.