The average prices of 11 key staple food items in Nigeria saw a noticeable decline compared to the previous month.
This is according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) food price report for August 2024.
The report highlights the month-on-month (MoM) percentage changes in the average prices of these staples, suggesting a temporary easing of food inflation pressures despite significant year-on-year (YoY) increases.
The 11 food items made up only 26% of the 43 food items listed by the NBS in its report for August, which means that the majority of the listed food items recorded a M0M increase in price amid the drop in general food inflation.
The headline inflation rate in August 2024 stood at 32.15%, marking a slight decrease of 1.25%-points from 33.40% in July 2024, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
Despite this reduction on a month-to-month basis, when compared year-on-year, the August 2024 headline inflation rate increased by 6.35%-points from the 25.80% recorded in August 2023, indicating that the overall inflationary pressures are still significantly higher than they were a year ago.
On a month-to-month basis, the headline inflation rate for August 2024 was recorded at 2.22%, reflecting a marginal decrease from 2.28% in July 2024.
This means that while prices continued to rise, the rate at which they increased slowed slightly between July and August.
When it comes to food inflation, the rate in August 2024 was 37.52%, which was 8.18%-points higher than the 29.34% recorded in August 2023. The year-on-year increase in food inflation was driven by rising prices of essential food items such as bread, maize grains, yams, palm oil, and other staples.
On a month-to-month basis, food inflation stood at 2.37% in August 2024, representing a slight decrease of 0.10%-points from 2.47% in July 2024.
Staple foods have experienced significant year-on-year (YoY) price increases, largely due to inflation, supply constraints, and demand fluctuations. While some items, like yam tuber and tomato, have shown month-on-month (MoM) price decreases, most others continue to see steady growth in prices on both a monthly and yearly basis. Price variations across Nigerian states highlight regional disparities, with certain areas experiencing higher price points due to logistical and market factors.