Nigeria’s headline inflation rate experienced a marginal decline in April 2025, falling to 23.71%, down from 24.23% recorded in March, according to the latest data released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The report, published Thursday, reflects a 0.52 percentage point decrease in the annual inflation rate, signaling a modest easing of price pressures in Africa’s largest economy.
“On a month-on-month basis, the headline inflation rate in April 2025 stood at 1.86%, which is 2.04 percentage points lower than the rate recorded in March 2025 (3.90%),” the NBS stated in its Consumer Price Index (CPI) report.
The bureau noted that while inflation remains high, the drop marks a slight relief for consumers who have faced persistent increases in the prices of goods and services over the past year.
In the food segment, the report revealed that food inflation stood at 21.36% year-on-year in April 2025—representing a sharp decline of 19.17 percentage points compared to 40.53% recorded in April 2024.
According to the NBS, “the significant decline in the food annual inflation figure is technically due to the change in the base year,” implying that statistical adjustments, rather than immediate market conditions, largely account for the sharp drop.
Despite the lower year-on-year figure, food prices remain a critical concern for many households, with rising transport and energy costs continuing to impact purchasing power.
Economic analysts are expected to further scrutinize the data to determine whether this decline signals a sustainable downward trend in inflation or a temporary statistical adjustment.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has made curbing inflation a key policy priority, recently adjusting interest rates and tightening monetary controls in an effort to stabilize the economy and strengthen the naira.
The latest inflation figures will likely influence future policy decisions, particularly as the federal government continues its efforts to manage the effects of subsidy removal, currency reforms, and broader structural economic changes.
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