Inflation rate declines to 15.37% - NBS

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has disclosed that the nation’s inflation rate slowed down to 15.37 per cent in 2017, making it the 11th consecutive decline year-on-year since January 2017.

The Bureau, in its Consumer Price Index (CPI) December 2017 report, said inflation rate slowed by 0.53 per cent points, lower than 15.90 per cent rate recorded in November. 

A review of 2017 inflation rate showed that the rate opened at 18.72 per cent in January 2017 to close at 17.78 per cent in February. In March, inflation rate closed at 17.26 per cent, the second decline recorded in two months. 

The bureau had explained that growing prices in Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and other Fuels, Education and Transport contributed to hike in inflation rate in the first quarter of 2017, following the unstable foreign exchange market. 

Economy indicator had revealed that, while economy growth declined, the rise in inflation was inevitable as falling exchange rate and rising foreign prices passed through directly to domestic prices. However, the inflation rate closed April at 17.24 per cent, 16.25 per cent in May 2017 and 16.10 per cent in June. 

In the third quarter, the inflation rate slowed marginally to 16.05 per cent in July, 16.01 per cent in August and 15.98 per cent in September. Towards the end of 2017, October to be precise, Inflation rate moved to 15.91 per cent in October and 15.90 per cent in November. 

According to Eyes Of Lagos investigation, The report released by NBS yesterday noted that on a month-on-month basis, the headline index increased by 0.59 per cent in December 2017, 0.19 per cent points higher from the rate of 0.78 per cent recorded in November. It said the percentage change in the average composite CPI for the twelve month period ending in December 2017 over the average of the CPI for the previous twelve month period was 16.50 percent, showing 0.26 percent point lower from 16.76 percent recorded in November 2017.