By Peter Omopo
Nigeria’s headline inflation rate fell for the fourth consecutive month in July 2025, dropping to 21.88 per cent from 22.22 per cent in June, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported on Friday.
According to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report, the July figure represents a 0.34 percentage point decline from June and an 11.52-point decrease compared to the 33.40 per cent recorded in July 2024. The report stated that the CPI rose to 125.9 in July from 123.4 the previous month.
The NBS noted that the year-on-year moderation partly reflected the recent change in the CPI base year. Despite the slowdown in annual inflation, short-term price pressures persisted, with the month-on-month inflation rate climbing to 1.99 per cent in July from 1.68 per cent in June.
Food inflation, a major driver of household expenses, eased to 22.74 per cent year-on-year from 39.53 per cent in the same month last year. On a monthly basis, food prices rose by 3.12 per cent, slightly lower than the 3.25 per cent recorded in June, due to slower price increases in vegetable oil, local rice, maize flour, guinea corn, wheat flour, and millet.
Urban inflation stood at 22.01 per cent year-on-year, compared with 21.08 per cent in rural areas. However, rural areas experienced higher month-on-month increases at 2.30 per cent, compared with 1.86 per cent in urban areas. Core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural products and energy, slowed to 21.33 per cent in July from 27.47 per cent a year earlier, with a month-on-month rise of 0.97 per cent, down from 2.46 per cent in June.
At the state level, Borno (34.52%), Niger (27.18%), and Benue (25.73%) recorded the highest annual headline inflation, while Yobe (11.43%), Zamfara (12.75%), and Katsina (15.64%) had the lowest.
The NBS report highlights that although annual inflation has continued to ease, persistent monthly increases indicate that the cost of living remains high for many Nigerians.
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