Inflationary Effect: Nigeria’s Inflation rate hits a record high of 17.33% in February from 16.47%

According to the latest inflation report from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), Nigeria’s inflation rate rose to 17.33% in February 2021, from 16.47% recorded in the previous month, which marks the highest inflation rate recorded in four years.

The last time Nigeria recorded an inflation rate this high was in February 2017, when it declined to 17.78% from 18.72%. On a month-on-month basis, the Headline index (the raw inflation figure) increased by 1.54% in February 2021, this is 0.05% point higher than the rate recorded in January 2021 (1.49%).

The Food Inflation Index rose to 21.79% in February 2021 compared to 20.57% recorded in January 2021. Nigeria’s Core Inflation, which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produce stood at 12.38% in February 2021 (a 0.53%, when compared to last month’s figure).

The worst-hit states include Kogi, Bauchi, and Ebonyi while the least affected states include Enugu, Kwara, and Cross River. P.S: This is in terms of Headline Inflation.

Down to what this means, the persistent rise in the prices of goods/services would mean that consumers will have to spend more money on items/services that they used to pay for less. Thus eroding the purchasing power of an average consumer.

Just so you know, the inflationary pressure was magnified in 2020 as a result of the covid-19 pandemic, which crippled the supply chain and halted business activities in most aspects of the Nigerian economy.