Nigeria’s Inflation Quickens for First Time Since Rebasing

Nigeria saw its inflation rate quicken last month for the first time since the consumer price index (CPI) was rebased.

Data released by the National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday show that the headline inflation rose to 24.2 percent from 23.2 percent in February, while food inflation eased to 21.8 percent from 23.5 percent.

“It is worth noting that the rise in 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,” analysts at Lagos-based CSL Research said.

After the CPI rebasing, the headline inflation rate dropped to 24.48 percent in January 2025 from 34.80% in December 2024. The rebasing exercise updated the base year from 2009 to 2024 and adjusted the weights of goods and services in the inflation basket.