Nigeria’s headline inflation rate eased marginally to 15.91 per cent in June 2026, down from 15.93 per cent recorded in May, marking the first decline after three consecutive months of increases.
The figures were contained in the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released on Wednesday by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The report indicates that although overall inflationary pressures remain elevated, the pace of price increases slowed slightly during the review period.
On a month-on-month basis, headline inflation also moderated to 1.66 per cent in June from 1.75 per cent in May, showing that prices continued to rise but at a slower rate than in the previous month.
The NBS said the Consumer Price Index increased to 143.0 points in June from 140.7 points in May, reflecting a 2.3-point increase in the general price level.
Average annual headline inflation for the 12 months ending June 2026 stood at 18.03 per cent, a significant improvement from 30.44 per cent recorded during the corresponding period in 2025.
Despite the slight moderation in overall inflation, food prices continued to rise.
According to the report, food inflation increased to 17.52 per cent year-on-year in June, compared with 16.96 per cent in May, although it remained considerably lower than the 25.41 per cent recorded in June 2025.
The NBS attributed the increase in food prices to higher costs of essential food items, including crayfish, fresh pepper, tomatoes, dried green peas, yam flour, water yam, beef, bananas, cassava flour, cowpea, garri, Irish potatoes and yam tubers.
Month-on-month food inflation accelerated sharply to 3.75 per cent in June from 2.98 per cent in May, indicating stronger food price pressures during the month.
The average annual food inflation rate for the 12 months ending June 2026 stood at 16.42 per cent, significantly lower than 31.93 per cent recorded a year earlier.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural produce and energy prices, stood at 15.92 per cent year-on-year in June, while month-on-month core inflation eased to 1.66 per cent from 1.94 per cent in May.
The average annual core inflation rate for the 12-month period was 18.82 per cent, down from 26.88 per cent in June 2025.
In urban areas, inflation stood at 16.08 per cent year-on-year, while month-on-month urban inflation edged up slightly to 2.13 per cent from 1.99 per cent in May.
Rural inflation, however, stood at 15.48 per cent year-on-year, with month-on-month rural inflation slowing sharply to 0.52 per cent, compared with 1.17 per cent recorded in the previous month.
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Across the states, Niger State recorded the highest year-on-year headline inflation at 42.23 per cent, followed by Kogi State at 41.59 per cent and the Federal Capital Territory (Abuja) at 39.91 per cent.
At the other end of the scale, Imo State posted the lowest headline inflation rate at 19.47 per cent, followed by Ebonyi State at 20.79 per cent and Katsina State at 21.87 per cent.
Month-on-month, the highest increases in headline inflation were recorded in Niger (11.65 per cent), Katsina (8.13 per cent) and Kwara (7.52 per cent), while Bayelsa (-6.48 per cent), Benue (-5.58 per cent) and Cross River (-5.12 per cent) experienced declines.
For food inflation, Kogi State recorded the highest year-on-year increase at 53.02 per cent, followed by Niger (43.83 per cent) and Benue (40.83 per cent).
The slowest annual increases in food inflation were recorded in Katsina (19.15 per cent), Rivers (23.81 per cent) and Imo (24.60 per cent).
On a month-on-month basis, food inflation was highest in Katsina (16.82 per cent), Kebbi (9.79 per cent) and Niger (8.96 per cent), while Borno (-3.54 per cent), Benue (-2.36 per cent) and Bayelsa (-1.34 per cent) recorded the slowest movement in food prices.
The latest figures suggest that while headline inflation has begun to ease, rising food costs remain a major challenge for households, highlighting the continued pressure on the cost of living across many parts of the country.