Nigeria’s Inflation Drops to Three-Year Low of 18.02%

*Food inflation follows suit, easing to pandemic-era levels

Nigeria’s headline inflation rate eased for the sixth consecutive month in September 2025, falling to 18.02% from 20.1% in August, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Wednesday.

Marketreporters analysis of the Consumer Price Index data shows the headline rate is now at its lowest level since May 2022, when compared with the old methodology.

Food inflation, which accounts for more than half of Nigeria’s total inflation basket, also declined month-on-month by 1.57% to 16.87%, marking the slowest rate since September 2020, when the economy was still grappling with the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. Core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural produce and energy prices, stood at 19.53% in September, from 20.33%.

Africa’s most populous nation’s inflation rate is now nearly on par with Angola’s, which stood at 18.24% last month.

The easing in inflation comes just weeks after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) cut the Monetary Policy Rate by 50 basis points to 27%, its first rate reduction in five years. The move signaled a potential policy shift after one of the most aggressive tightening cycles in the bank’s history and broadly aligned with market expectations.