ABUJA: For the eight consecutive months, Nigeria’s inflation rate dropped to 15.98% in September, from 16.01% in August, indicating stability in the economy. But food prices remain high, rising by 0.07% during the same period, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics. A review of the latest data showed that the consumer price index, which measures inflation, increased by 15.98% year-on-year in September 2017, down 0.03% from the rate recorded in August (16.01%), making it the eighth consecutive decline in the rate of headline inflation year-on-year since January 2017, Thisdaylive reported. The NBS noted that increases were recorded in all the divisions of the classification of individual consumption by purpose that yielded the top line index. The September drop is the eighth consecutive decline in the rate of headline year-on-year inflation since January 2017.
On a month-on-month basis, the headline index increased by 0.78% in September 2017, 0.19% points lower from the rate of 0.97% recorded in August. The percentage change in the average composite CPI for the 12-month period ending in September 2017 over the average CPI for the previous 12-month period which was 17.17%, showing 0.16% lower from 17.33% recorded in August 2017. The urban index rose by 16.18% (year-on-year) in September 2017, up by 0.05% point from 16.13% recorded in August and the rural index increased by 15.81% in September down from 15.91% in August. On month-on-month basis, the urban index rose by 0.84% in September 2017, down from 0.99% recorded in August, while the rural index rose by 0.74% in September 2017, down from 0.95% in August. The corresponding 12-month year-on-year average percentage change for the urban index decreased from 18.15% in August to 17.87% in September, while the corresponding rural inflation rate in September was 16.52% compared to 16.58% recorded in August 2017.
