By Abiola Olawale
Nigeria’s headline inflation rate surged to an alarming 33.88% in October 2025, marking a notable rise from the previous month’s rate of 32.7% in September 2024.
This increase represents a significant month-on-month escalation of 1.18 percentage points.
The data was disclosed in the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Friday, highlighting the ongoing economic pressures faced by consumers in the country.
According to the CPI report, the rise in inflation was caused by increased transportation costs and higher food prices.
In October 2024, the headline inflation rate saw a significant year-on-year increase, reaching 33.88%. This figure reflects a rise of 6.55 percentage points compared to the rate of 27.33% recorded in October 2023.
Also, the NBS reported an increase in the headline inflation rate on a month-on-month basis as well. In October 2024, the rate stood at 2.64%, which represents an increase of 0.12 percentage points from September 2024, where it was at 2.52%.
According to the NBS, the food inflation rate in October 2024 was 39.16% on a year-on-year basis, 7.64% points higher compared to the rate recorded in October 2023 (31.52%).
The year-on-year increase in food inflation was attributed to notable price hikes in several essential items.
The New Diplomat reports that within the Bread and Cereals category, there was a significant rise in the costs of Guinea Corn, Rice, and Maize Grains.
In the Potatoes, Yam & Other Tubers category, staples such as Yam, Water Yam, and Coco Yam have also seen price surges. Additionally, the Oils and Fats category experienced escalated prices for Palm Oil and Vegetable Oil. Lastly, in the Coffee, Tea & Cocoa category, beverages like Milo, Lipton, and Bournvita have contributed to the overall food inflation.
On a month-on-month basis, the food inflation rate in October 2024 was 2.94% which shows a 0.30% increase compared to the rate recorded in September 2024 (2.64%).
The rise can be attributed to the rate of increase in the average prices of Palm Oil, Vegetable oil, etc (Oil & Fats Class), Mudfish, Croaker (Apo), Fresh fish (Obokun), etc (Fish Class), Dried Beef, Goat Meat, Mutton, Skin meat, etc (Meat Class), and Bread, Guinea Corn flour, Plantain flour, Rice, etc (Bread and Cereals Class).
The average annual rate of Food inflation for the twelve months ending October 2024 over the previous twelve-month average was 38.12%, which was an 11.79% points increase from the average annual rate of change recorded in October 2023 (26.33%).
