Food is one of the basic necessities of man, but sadly, it is fast getting out of the reach of the average Nigerian.
This is so, as inflation rises daily, making it even more difficult for the masses to afford three square meal a day.
The new report released by the Nigerian Bureau of StatisticsNigerian Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has shown that the headline inflation rate increased year-on-year (YoY) by 0.98 percentage points to 29.9% in January 2024 from 28.92% in December 2023.
It was also noted that in January 2024, food inflation also increased to 35.41% from 33.93% in December 2023.
The report read: “In January 2024, the headline inflation rate increased to 29.9% relative to the December 2023 headline inflation rate, which was 28.92%.
Looking at the movement, the January 2024 headline inflation rate showed an increase of 0.98 percentage points when compared to the December 2023 headline inflation rate.
“Furthermore, on a month-on-month basis, the headline inflation rate in January 2024 was 2.64 per cent, which was 0.35 percentage points higher than the rate recorded in December 2023 (2.29%).
“This means that in January 2024, the rate of increase in the average price level is greater than the rate of increase in the average price level in December 2023.
Inflation Statistics
“The food inflation rate in January 2024 was 35.41% on a year-on-year basis, which was 11.1 percentage points higher compared to the rate recorded in January 2023 (24.32%).
It was also noted that the rise in food inflation on a year-on-year basis was caused by increases in prices of bread and cereals, potatoes, yam and other tubers, oil and fat, fish, meat, fruit, coffee, tea, and cocoa.
“On a month-on-month basis, the food inflation rate in January 2024 was 3.21%; this was 0.49 percentage points higher compared to the rate recorded in December 2023 (2.72%).
Also Read: Food Inflation: Hunger Strike To Worsen In Nigeria
“The average annual rate of food inflation for the 12 months ending January 2024 over the previous twelve-month average was 28.91% which was a 7.38 percentage point increase from the average annual rate of change recorded in January 2023 (21.53%)”.
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