THUR, APRIL 12 2018-theG&BJournal-The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) March 2018 inflation report, shows that Nigeria’s headline consumer price index extended deceleration (which started in 2017) to the fourteenth consecutive month.
Headline inflation was 13.34% y/y in March, moderating from 14.33% y/y in January. The data came in 18 bps and 31 bps below forecast of 13.52% y/y and Bloomberg compiled average estimate of 13.65% y/y respectively. On month-on-month basis, the headline index increased by 0.84% (vs. 0.79% the previous month).
Food inflation rose by 16.08% y/y in the review period, lower than the 17.59% y/y recorded in February. Meanwhile, similar to the previous month, the highest increase was recorded in the prices of bread and cereals, vegetables, oil and fats, coffee, tea and cocoa, milk, cheese and eggs, and fish. Meanwhile, on m/m basis, food inflation increased at a faster pace of 0.90%, compared to the 0.85% recorded in the previous month.
Core inflation was 11.2% y/y in March, vs. 11.7% in February. Similar to the observed trend in the previous month, the highest increases were reported in the prices of fuel and lubricants for personal transport and transport equipment, vehicle spare parts, narcotics, clearing, hospital services, maintenance and repair of personal transport equipment, repair and hire of clothing, and passenger travel by air. On a m/m basis however, the core index increased at a faster pace of 0.84%, 9 bps above the 0.75% reported in February.
The corresponding twelve month year-on-year average percentage change for the urban index is 15.87 percent in March 2018. This is less than 16.24 percent reported in February, while the corresponding rural inflation rate in March 2018 is 15.34 percent compared to 15.64 percent recorded in February.
