By Tony Obiechina Abuja
Nigeria’s headline inflation rate slowed to 22.97 percent in May 2025, a notable drop from the 23.71 percent recorded in April, according to the Statistician-General of the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Prince Adeyemi Adeniran.
The NBS said n a statement that the decline of 0.74 percentage points marked a modest easing in inflationary pressures across various sectors of the economy.
He explained that the food and non-alcoholic beverages category contributed the most to the inflation rate, accounting for 9.20 percent of the overall figure.
This was followed by restaurants and accommodation services, which contributed 2.9 percent, and transport at 2.45 percent. At the lower end of the spectrum were recreation, sport, and culture, with 0.07 percent; alcoholic beverages, tobacco, and narcotics at 0.09 percent; and insurance and financial services, which contributed 0.11 percent.
On food inflation, Adeniran noted that the rate stood at 21.14 percent on a year-on-year basis in May. However, month-on-month, the food inflation rate edged up slightly to 2.19 percent, compared to 2.06 percent in April, reflecting a 0.13 percentage point increase.
“The increase can be attributed to the rate of increase in average prices of items such as yam, avenger (ogbono/apon), cassava tuber, maize flour, fresh pepper, sweet potatoes, etc.,” he said.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural produce and energy prices, stood at 22.28 percent year-on-year in May. Adeniran added that, “On a month-on-month basis, the core inflation rate was 1.10 percent in May 2025, down 0.24 percentage points from April 2025 (1.34 percent).”
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He also provided figures from newly introduced sub-indices. According to the NBS, inflation for farm produce and goods stood at 22.38 percent and 9.39 percent respectively in May, compared to 0.95 percent and 1.89 percent in April. Conversely, inflation for services and energy came in at 1.79 percent and -0.43 percent respectively, a sharp shift from 2.20 percent and 13.6 percent in the previous month.
On the urban-rural inflation divide, Adeniran disclosed that the urban inflation rate on a year-on-year basis was 23.14 percent in May. Month-on-month, the urban rate rose to 1.40 percent from April’s 1.18 percent, an increase of 0.22 percentage points.
In contrast, rural inflation for the same period stood at 22.70 percent year-on-year. “On a month-on-month basis, the rural inflation rate in May 2025 was 1.83 percent, down by 1.72 percent compared to April 2025 (3.56 percent),” he noted.
The figures, while reflecting a slight reprieve from previous months, still highlight persistent cost-of-living challenges, especially in food-related categories.
