Nigeria’s inflation rate jumps to 24.23% in March

Nigeria’s headline inflation rate jumped by 105 basis points to 24.23% in March, data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed. Based on the rebased consumer price index (CPI) data, inflation increased by 105 bps to 24.23% year on year from 23.18% in February.
Inflation defied market expectations of a decline, which had been anticipated following the recent rebasing of the CPI methodology and the relative stability of the local currency. Core inflation—which excludes volatile food and energy prices—continued its upward trend, climbing to 24.4% year-on-year in March from 23.0% in February.
In contrast, food inflation eased to 21.8% in March, down from 23.5% in the previous month. On a monthly basis, the price pressures were noticeable, with headline, food, and core inflation rising by 3.9%, 2.2%, and 3.7%, respectively. This is significantly higher than the 2.0%, 1.7%, and 2.5% recorded in February.