Nigeria's Inflation Rises on Food Costs and Weak Currency

(Bloomberg) --

Nigeria’s inflation rate rose for the ninth straight month in May as food prices continue to climb and the currency remain under pressure.

Consumer prices rose 12.4% from a year earlier, compared with 12.3% in April, the Abuja-based National Bureau of Statistics said in a report published on Twitter Wednesday. Costs increased 1.17% in the month.

Key Insights

• Food inflation quickened to 15.04%, the highest rate since March 2018. Prices are being pushed up as clashes between herders and farmers cause insecurity and inter-state travel is disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic.
• The Central Bank of Nigeria unexpectedly cut its key interest rate to the lowest in four years last month in an effort to avert a recession in Africa’s largest economy that’s been pummeled by the plunge in oil prices and the pandemic.
• Inflation in Nigeria has been above the 9% upper limit of the central bank’s target band for five years and will likely continue to accelerate as border closures, initially ordered in August to curb smuggling of rice and other products, remain in place.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.