Inflation Rises To 15.69%

Nigeria’s headline inflation figure rose to 15.69%, up from 15.38% in March 2026.

According to a report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), there was an increase of 0.31% compared to the March 2026 Headline inflation rate.

It said the April figure was lower than the 26.82% recorded in the same month of the preceding year (April 2025).

It noted that on a month-on-month basis, the Headline inflation rate in April 2026 was 2.13%, which was 2.05% lower than the rate recorded in March 2026 (4.18%).

“This means that in April 2026, the rate of increase in the average price level was lower than the rate of increase in the average price level in March 2026.”

It stated that the Food inflation rate in April 2026 was 16.06% on a year-on-year basis and stood at 24.68% in the same month of the preceding year (April 2025).

It explained that the food inflation rate in April 2026 was 3.63%, down by 0.54% points from March 2026 (4.17%).

It attributed the drop to the rate of change in the average prices of millet whole grain, yam flour, ginger (fresh), beef, garri, yam tuber, pepper (fresh), cray fish, cassava tuber, beans, Irish potatoes, tomatoes (fresh), wheat grain (sold loose), soy beans, guinea corn, plantain, carrots (fresh) etc.

“The average annual rate of Food inflation for the twelve months ending April 2026, relative to the previous twelve-month average, was 17.55%, which was 17.05% points lower than the average annual rate of change recorded in April 2025 (34.60%).”

On state analysis, the report All-Items inflation rate on a year-on-year basis was highest in Sokoto (25.74%), Bauchi (22.52%), and Zamfara (22.03%), while Edo (5.91%), Borno (6.72%) and Jigawa (7.04%) recorded the lowest rise.

On a month-on-month basis, however, April 2026 recorded the highest increases in Niger (5.66%), Kano (4.50%) and Plateau (4.39%), while Bayelsa (0.64%), Enugu (0.98%), and Rivers (1.02%) recorded a decline.

For food inflation on a year-on-year, it was highest in Enugu (32.67%), Kwara (30.77%), and Adamawa (30.14%), while Borno (1.67%), Jigawa (6.17%) and Taraba (7.19%) recorded the slowest rise.

But on a month-on-month basis, it was highest in Niger (8.53%), Bauchi (6.78%) and Kogi (6.72%), while Kebbi (0.23%), Katsina (0.47%), and Bayelsa (1.29%) recorded a decline.