The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) released the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or inflation rate in July, 2017, showing that inflation for the month rose 16.05% year-on-year, from 16.1% in June, representing the seventh consecutive monthly drop.
Month-on-month, Nigeria’s inflation rate fell to 1.21% from 1.58%, with the highest increase recorded in meat, oil and fats, bread and cereals, coffee, tea and cocoa, vegetables, fish, potatoes, yams and other tubers, garments and clothing materials and other articles of clothing.
Food pressure, according to the NBS data, continued into July as food inflation rose to 20.28% year-on-year from 19.91%; just as it climbed month-on-month from 1.52% to 1.99%.
However, core inflation also dropped for the second successive month from 12.5% in June to 12.2% and month-on-month from 1.32% in June to 1%, with highest increase recorded in medical services; clothing materials and other articles of clothing; furniture and furnishing; glassware, tableware and household utensils; books and stationary, accommodation services; and household textiles.
According to data on selected food prices nationwide in the month of July, one kilogramme each of tomato cost N394.13; rice (local sold loose), N323.25; yam tuber, N294.12; broken rice (ofada), N473.4; brown beans (sold loose), N382.35; white beans (sold loose), N343.96; and garri (yellow), N350.46; while the white variant goes for N317.10/kg.
Across the states, while 1kg of tomato cost N530.61 in Abia, it goes forN516.50 in Anambra; N266.58 in Bauchi; N508.27 in Bayelsa;N380.64 in Benue; N423.28 in the FCT Abuja; N654.11 in Akwa Ibom; N342.13 in Borno; Cross River, N588.86; and N258.97 in Adamawa. Rice (local sold loose), went for N320.85/kg in Anambra; N344.99 in Abia; N347.14 in Ebonyi; Delta, N344.84; Cross River, N321.31; Borno, N289.98; Akwa Ibom, N320.77; Adamawa, N261.75; Abuja, N294.56; Benue, N338.89; Bayelsa, N399.76; and Bauchi, N273.77. A kilogramme of yam tuber, sold for N232.54 in Borno; an item that cost N403.90 in Bayelsa; N252.12; Abuja, N278.20; Adamawa, N277.99; Akwa Ibom, N356.96; Borno, N228.51; Cross River, N242; Delta, N346.50; Ebonyi, N326.83; Abia, N277.68; and Anambra, N238.38.