Nigeria Inflation Rate Climbs in November as Food Prices Rise

(Bloomberg) -- Nigeria’s inflation rate climbed in November as the cost of food surged.

Consumer prices in Africa’s largest oil producer rose 11.28 percent from a year earlier, compared with 11.26 percent in October, the Abuja-based National Bureau of Statistics said in a report published on its website Friday. Prices rose 0.8 percent in the month.

Key Insights:

• Inflation was driven by higher prices for bread and cereals, milk, cheese and yam, causing the November overall food index to rise by 13.3 percent from a year earlier
• Inflation is expected to accelerate partly due to election-related spending with Nigeria scheduled to vote in February, and an increase in national budget disbursements. Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele sees the rate remaining above the 9 percent upper end of the target, and only starting to moderate after mid-2019
• Price risks should force policy makers to maintain a tight monetary stance that’s kept the benchmark interest rate at a record 14 percent for more than two years despite weak economic growth. The policy-formulating committee reconvenes in January to review rates.

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• For a table on Nigerian CPI, click here

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