Nigeria’s Inflation Slows Than Expected in June

• Nigeria’s Inflation Slows Than Expected in June

Inflation rate in Nigeria moderated in the month of June, according to the data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).

The Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures inflation rate, rose by 11.22 percent in June, the lowest rate of increase recorded this year. Also, the rate is lower than the 11.40 recorded in May and the 11.32 predicted by analysts at FSDH.On a monthly basis, the headline inflation increased by 1.07 percent, representing a decline of 0.04 percent when compared to the 1.11 percent filed in the month of May.

Similarly, food sub-index grew by 1.36 percent in June, again 0.05 percent lower than the 1.41 percent achieved in the preceding month.

On a yearly basis, the food gauge increased by 13.42 percent, higher than the 13.37 percent recorded in May. Suggesting that while prices of food items are moderating in recent month, 12-year average remained high.

Analysts at FSDH attributed the improvement in headline inflation to a slower rate of increase recorded in June when compared with the same period of last year.

However, the Central Bank of Nigeria foreign exchange intervention programme through various forex segments remains key to price moderation, especially after the Importers & Exporters forex window was launched in 2017.