The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), says inflation rate reduced by 0.05 percent in April ‘compared to what obtained in March’.
It said while inflation rate stood at 18.17 percent in March, it reduced to 18.12 percent in April.
The rate is contained in the NBS’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) report for April 2021 released on Monday, in Abuja.
The CPI measures the average change over time in prices of goods and services for day-to-day living.
The report also said increases were recorded in all Classification of Individual Consumption by Purpose (COICOP) divisions that yielded the headline index.
“On month-on-month basis, the headline index increased by 0.97 percent in April. This is 0.59 percentage points higher than the rate recorded in March (1.56 percent)”, the report said.
The NBS said the percentage change in the average composite of CPI for the 12 months period ending in April over the average of CPI for the previous 12 months period was 15.04 percent.
This, it said, represented a 0.48 percent increase over 14.55 percent recorded in March.
It, however, said the rural index also rose by 0.95 percent in April, down by 0.57 percent, compared to the 1.52 percent rate recorded in March.
“The corresponding twelve-month year-on-year average percentage change for the urban index is 15.63 percent in April.
“This is higher than 15.15 percent reported in March, while the corresponding rural inflation rate in April is 14.48 percent compared to 13 percent recorded in March,” it stated.
The NBS said composite food index rose by 22.72 percent in April compared to 22.95 percent in March.
It added that on month-on-month basis, the food sub-index increased by 0.99 percent in April, down by 0.91 percent from 1.90 percent recorded in March.
It said the rise in the food index was caused by increases in prices of coffee, tea and cocoa, bread and cereals, soft drinks, milk, cheese and eggs, vegetables, meat, oil and fats, fish and potatoes, yam and other tubers.
The data bureau said “All items less farm produce” or Core inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce stood at 12.74 percent in April, up by 0.07 percent when compared with 12.67 percent recorded in March.
It added that on month-on-month basis, the core sub-index increased by 0.99 percent in April, down by 0.07 percent when compared with 1.06 percent recorded in March.
It said the highest increases were recorded in the prices of pharmaceutical products, vehicle spare parts, hairdressing salons and personal grooming establishments.
Other areas are garments, furniture and furnishing, medical services, shoes and other footwear.
Others are motor cars, major household appliances whether electric or not, dental services, hospital services, non-durable household goods and fuel and lubricants for personal transport equipment.
For state profile, the NBS said in April, “all-items” inflation on year-on-year basis was highest in Kogi at 24.33 percent, Bauchi State at 22.93 percent and Sokoto State at 20.96 percent.
Abia at 15.94 percent, Kwara at 15.70 percent and Katsina State at 15.58 percent recorded the slowest rise in headline year-on-year inflation.
On month-on-month basis, however, in April “all-items” inflation was highest in Kebbi at 2.24 percent, Cross River at 1.99 percent and Jigawa at 1.78 percent.
Ebonyi at 0.12 percent recorded the slowest rise in headline inflation month-on-month with Rivers and Ogun recording price deflation or negative inflation.
For food inflation on a year-on-year basis, in April, it was highest in Kogi at 30.52 percent, Ebonyi 28.07 percent and Sokoto State at 26.90 percent.
Abuja at 18.63 percent, Akwa Ibom at 18.51 percent and Bauchi State at 17.64 percent recorded the slowest rise in year-on-year inflation.
On month-on-month basis, however, April food inflation was highest in Kebbi at 2.46 percent, Ekiti State at 2.42 percent and Kano State 2.17 percent.
Meanwhile, Abuja at 0.05 percent recorded the slowest rise in month-on-month food inflation with Rivers and Ogun recording price deflation or negative inflation.
(NAN)
