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The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has reported today that Nigeria's Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose by 11.44 per cent year-on-year in December 2018. This represents an increase of 0.16 percentage points compared with 11.28 per cent recorded in November. It is also the second consecutive monthly rise in the CPI.

The headline inflation began edging up in August 2018, ending an 18-month deceleration when it rose to 11.23 per cent from 11.14 per cent in July. It rose further to 11.28 per cent in September before easing slightly by 2 percentage points in October.

According to the latest inflation report, food inflation rose by 13.56 per cent in December, compared with 13.30 per cent recorded in the previous month. The NBS stated that the rise in the food index was caused by the increase in the prices of soft drinks, fish, bread and cereals, oils and fats, coffee, tea and cocoa, meat, milk, cheese and egg, vegetables, potatoes, yam and other tubers.

On a month-on-month basis, however, the food index dipped by 0.09 percentage points to 0.81 per cent in December, compared with the 0.90 per cent recorded in the preceding month of November.

Core inflation, which excludes the prices of agricultural produce, stood at 9.8 per cent, maintaining the same rate recorded in the previous month.

On a month-on-month basis, however, core inflation increased by 0.50 per cent in December 2018, compared with the 0.68 per cent rate recorded in the preceding month of November.

The highest increases in core inflation were recorded in the prices of major household appliances, domestic services and household services, dental services, garments, narcotics, tobacco, medical services, cleaning, repair and hire of clothing.

According to the nation’s statistics agency, urban inflation increased to 11.73 per cent in December, compared with 11.61 per cent recorded in November. Rural inflation also increased to 11.18 per cent in December from 10.99 per cent in the previous month.

This latest inflation data is 0.25 percentage points below the prediction of FSDH Research, a Lagos-based investment banking firm, whose analysts had forecasted an 11.69 per cent increase in inflation for December.

Meanwhile, the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is scheduled to meet on Monday, January 21 and Tuesday, January 22nd.