Nigeria’s Inflation Rises To 15.93% In May — NBS
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported that Nigeria’s headline inflation rate rose to 15.93 percent in May 2026.
The figure was contained in the bureau’s Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released on Monday.
According to the NBS, this represents the third consecutive monthly increase recorded in 2026.
“On a year-on-year basis, the headline inflation rate rose to 15.93%, up from 15.69% in April 2026 and down from 26.06% recorded in May 2025,” the bureau stated.
It added that “the May 2026 headline inflation rate showed an increase of 0.24% compared to April 2026.”
The report also noted that on a month-on-month basis, inflation stood at 1.75% in May 2026, a decline from 2.13% recorded in April 2026.
“This indicates that the rate of increase in the average price level slowed compared to April,” the NBS explained.
On food inflation, the bureau said the rate rose to 16.96 percent year-on-year in May 2026, up from 16.68 percent in April, but lower than 24.55 percent recorded in May 2025.
It further stated that food inflation on a month-on-month basis dropped to 2.98 percent in May from 3.63 percent in April.
The NBS attributed the movement to changes in the prices of items such as onions, maize (corn) grains, melon (egusi), water yam, cassava flour, crayfish, fresh pepper, tomatoes, wheat grain, cassava tuber, yam tuber, sweet potatoes, ginger, plantain and cowpea, among others.
By state, year-on-year food inflation was highest in Adamawa (29.62 percent), Kwara (28.47 percent) and Rivers (28.40 percent), while Borno (-6.53 percent), Taraba (1.13 percent) and Bayelsa (5.99 percent) recorded the slowest increases.
On a month-on-month basis, food inflation was highest in Bauchi (7.73 percent), Ogun (6.86 percent) and Jigawa (6.69 percent), while Niger (3.54 percent), Katsina (-3.48 percent) and Gombe (-2.22 percent) recorded the slowest movement.
Titilope Adako is a talented and intrepid journalist, dedicated to shedding light on the untold stories of Osun State and Nigeria. Through incisive reporting, she tackles a broad spectrum of topics, from politics and social justice to culture and entertainment, with a commitment to accuracy, empathy, and inspiring positive change.
