Nigeria’s headline inflation rate eased to 15.43 per cent in July 2026, but the relief was not fully felt by households as food prices accelerated sharply during the month.
The latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that headline inflation declined by 0.48 percentage points from 15.91 per cent recorded in June.
However, food inflation rose to 5.56 per cent month-on-month in July, up from 3.75 per cent in June, representing a 1.82 percentage-point increase.
The NBS attributed the rise to higher average prices of several food items, including crayfish, fresh pepper, onions, carrots, rice, water yam, tomatoes, garri, plantain, beef, eggs, guinea corn, ginger and plantain flour.
On a year-on-year basis, food inflation moderated to 20.31 per cent in July, compared with 26.20 per cent recorded in July 2025.
The NBS said the July increase in food inflation reflected changes in the average prices of the affected food products.
Despite the monthly rise in food prices, core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural products and energy, also moderated. It fell to 14.97 per cent year-on-year in July, from 23.95 per cent in July 2025. On a month-on-month basis, core inflation declined to 0.15 per cent from 1.66 per cent in June.
The Consumer Price Index increased to 145.3 points in July from 143.0 points in June, indicating a 2.2-point monthly increase in the index used to measure changes in the prices of goods and services.
Monthly headline inflation also slowed to 1.57 per cent in July, from 1.66 per cent in June.
According to the NBS, the development means that the average price level continued to rise in July, but at a slower rate than in June.
Food prices, however, remained uneven across the country. Adamawa recorded the highest annual food inflation at 51.36 per cent, followed by Katsina at 30.84 per cent and Zamfara at 30.65 per cent.
On the other hand, Borno recorded negative 0.31 per cent, while Nasarawa and Kebbi recorded 6.88 per cent and 12.50 per cent respectively.
On a month-on-month basis, Adamawa recorded the highest food inflation at 17.02 per cent, followed by Lagos at 13.48 per cent and Borno at 13.26 per cent, while Jigawa, Kebbi and Bauchi recorded declines.
The latest figures show a mixed picture for Nigerians: while the overall pace of inflation continues to ease, the sharp monthly increase in food prices means households are still facing significant pressure when buying everyday essentials.
The development comes amid ongoing efforts by the Federal Government and monetary authorities to bring inflation under control following the sharp increase in prices after economic reforms introduced since 2023.
