Nigeria’s headline inflation rate eased to 15.39 percent in August 2026, down from 15.43 percent in July, as food price pressures slowed.
Data from the Consumer Price Index, CPI, report released in September 2026 showed that the decline was marginal year-on-year at 0.04 percentage points, but more pronounced month-on-month, indicating a slower pace of price increases.
According to the report, the CPI rose to 146.3 points in August, representing a 1.0-point increase from 145.3 recorded in July. On a month-on-month basis, inflation stood at 0.71 per cent in August, compared with 1.57 per cent in July, representing a 0.86 percentage-point decline in the monthly pace of price increases.
This marks a continued moderation in inflationary pressures compared with the corresponding period of 2025, when headline inflation stood at 23.14 per cent.
The latest figures indicate that Nigerians are still facing substantial increases in the cost of living, with food remaining the largest contributor to overall inflation.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) report showed that Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages contributed 6.16 per cent to the year-on-year headline inflation rate in August, making it by far the largest contributor.
This was followed by restaurants and accommodation services at 1.99 per cent, transport at 1.64 per cent, housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels at 1.30 per cent, and education services at 0.95 per cent.
The food inflation rate stood at 19.57 per cent year-on-year in August, down sharply from 25.30 per cent recorded in August 2025.
On a month-on-month basis, food inflation fell to 1.02 per cent, from 5.56 per cent in July, representing a 4.55 percentage-point decline.
The Bureau attributed the slowdown principally to changes in the average prices of commodities including palm oil, carrots, pepper, onions, cassava flour, beef, yam flour, water yam, melon (egusi), fresh ginger, fresh fish, Irish potatoes, wheat grain, frozen chicken and turkey meat.
The figures suggest that although food prices remained considerably higher than a year earlier, the rate at which they were rising slowed during the month.
The moderation was also reflected in core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural produce and energy prices.
The report put core inflation at 13.29 per cent year-on-year in August, down from 22.93 per cent in August 2025. On a month-on-month basis, core inflation stood at -0.06 per cent, compared with 0.15 per cent in July.
The 12-month average annual rate of core inflation was 17.30 per cent in August, compared with 26.15 per cent in the corresponding period of 2025.
The NBS figures, however, reveal significant differences in inflationary pressures across the country.
At the state level, Lagos recorded the highest year-on-year all-items inflation at 23.68 per cent, followed by Zamfara at 22.56 per cent and Enugu at 22.06 per cent.
At the other end of the scale, Sokoto recorded the lowest year-on-year headline inflation at 2.11 per cent, followed by Kebbi at 3.72 per cent and Jigawa at 3.81 per cent.
The monthly figures presented an entirely different picture, with Rivers recording the highest month-on-month inflation at 6.92 per cent, followed by Osun at 5.61 per cent and Kano at 5.59 per cent.
Anambra, Bauchi and Borno recorded the lowest month-on-month movements, at -8.83 per cent, -7.13 per cent and -7.09 per cent respectively.
Food inflation also varied widely across states. Adamawa recorded the highest year-on-year food inflation at 38.85 per cent, followed by Zamfara at 37.96 per cent and Bayelsa at 36.20 per cent.
Borno recorded a -4.04 per cent year-on-year food inflation rate, while Jigawa and Kebbi recorded -0.23 per cent and 3.47 per cent respectively.
The disparity underscores the uneven nature of price movements across Nigeria, although the NBS cautioned against directly comparing states because consumption patterns and expenditure weights differ from one location to another.
The bureau explained that the CPI is constructed from prices collected across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, covering both urban and rural locations.
The current CPI comprises 74 population strata and a basket of 242 items, with weights derived from household expenditure estimates.
Urban inflation stood at 15.88 per cent year-on-year, while rural inflation was 14.23 per cent. But on a month-on-month basis, urban inflation fell to 0.28 per cent from 1.90 per cent in July, whereas rural inflation increased to 1.79 per cent from 0.78 per cent.
The figures indicate that the moderation in headline inflation was driven more strongly by developments in urban prices, while rural consumers experienced a faster monthly increase in average prices.
The 12-month average inflation rate also declined substantially. The average CPI for the 12 months ending August 2026 rose by 16.30 per cent, representing a 12.02 percentage-point decline from the 28.32 per cent recorded in August 2025.
Despite the improvement, the persistence of double-digit food inflation remains a major concern for households, particularly given the heavier weight of food and non-alcoholic beverages in consumer spending.
The August report presents a mixed picture: inflationary pressure is clearly moderating compared with a year earlier, but the cost-of-living burden has not disappeared.
