Nigeria’s headline inflation rate rose to 34.19% in June, relative to the 33.95% recorded in May 2024.
The nation’s headline inflation has risen for 19th straight months, defying both monetary and fiscal solutions.
In the Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released on Monday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), the June 2024 headline inflation rate rose by 0.24% points when compared to the May 2024 headline inflation rate.
The report pointed at food and non-alcoholic beverages as major contributors to the inflation rate, with food inflation rising to 40.87 percent in June from the 40.66 percent recorded in May 2024.
NBS said, on a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate was 11.40% points higher compared to the rate recorded in June 2023, which was 22.79%.
This shows that the headline inflation rate (year-on-year basis) increased in the month of June 2024 when compared to the same month in the preceding year (i.e. June 2023).
Furthermore, on a month-on-month basis, the headline inflation rate in June 2024 was 2.31%, which was 0.17% higher than the rate recorded in May 2024 (2.14%).
This means that in the month of June 2024, the rate of increase in the average price level is higher than the rate of increase in the average price level in May 2024.
Recently, during his interview with Bloomberg in London, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Olayemi Cardoso, reaffirmed the determination of the Bank’s Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) to tame the rising inflation in the country using conventional methods.
He noted that the Monetary Policy decision of the apex bank was working which is evident from the month-on-month deceleration in the inflation rates.
He said, the MPC members remained vigilant in monitoring inflation trends and ensuring a moderation of inflation numbers.
“MPC members will continue to monitor the trajectory and are determined to ensure that they put inflation under control,” he said.
To further tame the rising food inflation in the country, the federal government last week announced a 150-day Duty-Free Import Window for Food Commodities, suspension of duties, tariffs and taxes for the importation of certain food Commodities (through land and sea borders). These commodities include maize, husked brown rice, wheat and cowpeas.
