Nigeria: Inflation inches down in May
Consumer prices rose 1.01% month-on-month in May, up from April’s 0.97% increase. The print reflected accelerating food and textile price increases.
Inflation dropped from 18.1% in April to a three-month low of 17.9% in May. Meanwhile, the trend pointed up as annual average inflation came in at 15.5% in May from 15.0% in April. Moreover, core consumer prices, which exclude volatile agricultural produce, rose 1.2% month-on-month in May (April: 1.0%), while core inflation rose to 13.1% in May from April’s 12.7%.
Analysts at the EIU added:
“We expect inflation to average 17.0% in 2021, with increases on both core and non-core levels over 2020, albeit a decline from a rate of 18.1% in April. Foreign-exchange restrictions on various imported goods, including staple foods, and currency movements are inflation-driving factors, but domestic food prices have edged down in annual terms, and the government is protecting consumers from global crude oil price increases by using subsidies (expected to remain in place throughout 2021).”